


Battle Fever

by Pandorah



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Canon Divergent, Canon Typical Violence, Cor/OC brief, Everyone lives, F/M, Fingering, Gladio/OC is main, Hand Jobs, I just wanted to play with Gladio okay, Oral Sex, Semi Public Sex, This was meant to be a one shot, battle fever, because I said so, blowjob, getting horny while fighting, sex in dangerous situations, so much sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-21
Updated: 2019-04-21
Packaged: 2020-01-23 11:11:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 10
Words: 45,336
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18548590
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pandorah/pseuds/Pandorah
Summary: Gladio is called in to the hunter base that was established near Lestallum. Cor needs help with the increase in daemon activity. Gladio is happy to help but is surprised to find that Cor seemed to be in a relationship with a woman named Ruby. Or so he thought until the Marshal convinces him to take her off his hands.Gladio and Ruby use each other to relieve stress after fighting daemon all the time and soon it becomes more than just sex, at least for one of them. Gladio falls fast but can he get Ruby to love him back when she is still in love with Cor?





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> I just had a short and smutty idea in my head then plot happened and I ended up with this. There is time jumping between chapters but I hope it doesn't get confusing. I didn't want to write ten years of stuff, lol.

"I expect each and every one of you to continue to fulfill your duties while I am away. If you have any questions or concerns, please speak to Monica. She is in charge until I return." Cor Leonis gestured to the woman beside him as he spoke. He looked around at the faces of the few Crownsguard that stood before him as well as some Hunters that had been recruited. "If there are no questions for me now, you are all dismissed."

The small group of about a dozen people broke up to go about their duties. Gladio was familiar with everyone in the group for the exception of a woman who had shown up shortly after he did this morning. He had not spoken to her yet as Cor had called a meeting to discuss current plans for their ongoing missions. As he was about to follow them as they headed into a tent, he was stopped by a familiar face.

"Hey Gladio, it’s nice to see you again." Dave said with a bit of a smile and shook the other man’s hand. "It will be nice to have some extra muscle around. Things have been starting to go downhill faster ever since...well, you know." he shot a glare up at the sky. 

"Yeah, I was in the area and got a call from Cor asking for an extra hand. Said you guys were dealing with something big. I wasn't sure if he meant something big in size or what. Considering everything that is going on, I'm relieved to know that it's just red giants."

"You say that like they aren't bad enough!" Dave chuckled but soon turned somber. "You didn't happen to bring any tags with you did you?"

Gladio dug around in one of his pockets and pulled out a handful. "While I am happy to return these, I just wish there weren't so damn many."

Dave took the tags and looked over the names printed into the metal. "There will be many more to come. With how everything else is, I was talking with Cor about doing a memorial stone instead. Some of these tags no longer have places they can be returned to."

Both men were silent for a moment before Gladio let out a sigh. "It will get better once Noctis returns. We just have to hold on until then." A smile formed on his face then and he gave a nod. "I need to go speak with Cor before he heads out. Catch you later for a beer?"

"Sure!" The other hunter agreed with a grin and walked away with a wave.

Gladio headed towards the large tent he had seen Cor go into after the meeting. He passed by a group of hunters snickering to themselves and looking towards the tent. When they saw Gladio heading towards them, all but two of them left. The two remaining looked between each other and spoke under their breaths.

"I wouldn't if I were you." one of them said with a grin before he and the other one turned to go about their business.

Gladio just frowned at them in confusion, unable to ask for clarification as to what they meant. He could hear muffled voices coming from inside but they were not angry or shouting. He actual heard the Marshal chuckle after the person with him said something too soft to make out. With a shake of his head, the frown turned into a grin as he pulled back the tent flap and went inside. He immediately froze in his tracks.  
The woman he had not met yet was sitting on a large crate with her legs wrapped around Cor's waist, one of her hands in his hair while the other was on his lower back. Cor's mouth traveled down to nibble at her neck making her moan while one of his hands cupped and caressed a bare breast. He let out a deep groan as her nails dug into his skin while his hips rocked into her, picking up his pace as they got closer to their climax. 

Gladio just stood there with wide eyes and his mouth moving soundlessly in surprise. In all the years that he had known the Marshall, he'd never even heard of the man having any kind of trysts or lovers. To walk in and see him like this was quite the shock. He finally took a step back and made a quick retreat outside.

Fifteen minutes later and the tent flap was pulled to the side as the woman came out. As she moved past Gladio, just reaching to mid chest on him in height, she kept her eyes locked onto his. She may be much smaller than he was but she wasn't intimidated by his size like most people.   
"He’s all yours now." she winked before she walked away.  
Gladio waited a couple of minutes before he announced himself this time before entering the tent. Now that the shock had passed he was grinning again.

"I guess I know firsthand now that the rumors I've heard about you aren't true. Marshal Cor Leonis isn't so cold hearted after all."

Cor ignored Gladio's comment as he picked a duffel bag up off the floor and put it on the crate the woman had been sitting on. "I assume that you are here because you had questions for me?" he began packing his bag with the supplies needed for the mission he was getting ready to leave for.  
"Now I have a few new ones too." Gladio handed Cor a med kit when the other pointed at it. "Who is she? When did you meet? How long have you two been-"

"Do you have any questions pertaining to the mission you are doing for me or did you just come to chat?" Cor looked up from his bag and sighed at the look he received. He thought a moment before responding. "Her name is Ruby and she is a hunter I picked up over at the Vesperpool a couple of months ago."

"And?" Gladio wiggled his brows. "Come on give me some details, Cor. I've never known you to be with anyone before. I’m honestly surprised you’ve finally allowed yourself something enjoyable that’s not related to work." He had heard rumors about how Cor had been when he was younger, but nothing at all recent. Apparently he had been quite the ladies man when he was Gladio’s age.

The Marshal looked at the other man with a slight frown. "Things are not like that between us. With everything going on, and my job, now is not the time to be indulging in romantic inclinations. It is simply stress relief for both of us."

Gladio crossed his arms over his chest. "With the way things are is exactly why you should let yourself have something, Cor. Things are getting even worse out there, and the longer that Noct is gone..." he trailed off and gave his head a shake. "Look, you can still do your duty, I'm not saying to stop that, but if she makes you happy, then enjoy it while you can. People are dying every day. This could be your last chance."

Cor picked the bag up and slung the strap over his shoulder before giving a last look around the tent to make sure he had everything that he needed. He walked over to Gladio and put a hand on the younger mans shoulder. "That is not a path for me, Gladio. I was never meant to have a family." he looked towards the tent flap as if he were searching for something. "Do me a favor and keep an eye on her while I'm gone. She's even more reckless than you where when you were younger, but she's a damn fine Hunter. You'll probably like her." he added with a smirk, then left the tent.

Gladio sighed and followed after the other man. 

The woman, Ruby, saw Cor come out and she hurried over to him. They exchanged words quietly, some of which had Ruby scowling and then punched him hard enough in the arm that he actually winced. Then Cor left with a small group of his guard and a few hunters. Ruby watched him leave and long after he was out of sight. Gladio saw her shoulders slump before she turned and headed across camp to where a few chocobo were leashed up. He watched her for a moment, noting that she seemed sad that Cor had gone, but after a moment she shook her head and the sadness was gone. It was then that he decided to head over to her to finally introduce himself.

"Uh, hey there. I know we just got off to a really awkward start, but I still wanted to introduce myself." Gladio waited for her to turn to face him before he spoke again. "The name's Gladiolus Amicitia. Just call me Gladio." He gave her a smile and a wink.

She stared up at him with clear, blue eyes like the sky. Bluer than any he's seen. "I'm Ruby." she eyed him up and down, not being shy about it either. "I've heard a lot about you from Cor and Dave. They say you are good at kicking daemon ass."

He chuckled, "Yeah, I suppose I am."

Ruby snorted and turned back to the chocobo she had been feeding. This one had red and orange mixed coloring that made it look like fire. "They were right about you being cocky too." She finished with that one and then moved to the next one, this one a very pale yellow, which was eagerly awaiting its turn. "I hope to be impressed on our mission together. I'm looking forward to seeing how you handle that big sword of yours too."

"Cor seems to like the way you handle big swords." the words slipped out of his mouth before he could stop himself. He was about to apologies but was cut off by a sudden burst of laughter.

"Oh, I suppose he does." Ruby set the feed down and turned back to face Gladio fully, staring up at him again, one hand resting on a hip. "You'll see my sword handling skills yourself soon enough." Something flickered in her eyes a second later, her cheeks burned red, and her head lowered before she practically fled from him.

Gladio turned to stare after her, wondering what just happened. She went to bold flirtatious to a shy innocent. It was rather adorable.

For the rest of that day and into the evening, Ruby actively avoided him. He would smile at her and wave but it only resulted in her looking away or physically leaving out of his view. Some of the other men around him found the situation hilarious but would not explain to him why this was happening or what was going on with her. Even Dave provided to be tight lipped about her but only smiled and reassured him everything was fine.

"Just wait until tomorrow when we go on the hunt. It should help you understand her a bit more." Dave said while they ate some snacks late that night. The woman in question was sitting in another part of the camp talking with Monica and another Crownsguard member. "Once you figure it out, I think the two of you will get along just fine. Just be patient with her, alright?"  
......

The following night, the Hunters going on the current hunt for the red giants packed up their things and finalized their plans. From the intel that had been gathered, there were at least four red giants hanging around the outskirts of Lestallum and it was starting to make people there very, very nervous. Over a half dozen hunters had already been killed when trying to fight them on their own. Even some of Cor's Crownsguard had perished in the fights. 

"Alright, we all have our orders. Let's move out and go take down these bastards!" Gladio said loudly. The hunters going on the mission climbed into their vehicles to leave.

"Gladio wait." Ruby walked up to him with an angry look in her eyes. "Why am I not on one of the teams? I am supposed to be going on this mission."

The man in question slowly turned around, already knowing that this was going to happen. "From what I understand you are a good hunter, but I've not seen your skills yet myself. Not knowing that, I cannot in good conscious bring you along. Instead, I want you to stay here and help Monica."

Dave, who was riding with Gladio and therefore was currently waiting for him, gave a low whistle. "Bad idea." he said simply before climbing into his truck to wait.

"I know for a fact that you haven’t seen everyone’s fighting ability. If this is just because I’m a woman-“

“It’s not. I know plenty of women who can fight. That’s not it.” He had promised Cor he’d keep an eye on her and make sure she was safe. Bringing her on a dangerous mission seemed like the opposite thing to do.

“How do you expect to see what I can do if you don't bring me along?" her voice had grown a bit louder and she was baring her teeth at him like an angry dog.

"I've given you your order, Ruby. Is there going to be a problem?" Gladio's voice was hard and firm, leaving no room for argument.

Anger flared up in her eyes and she opened her mouth to yell at him, but then let out a growl instead and turned on her heels and stormed off. “Arrogant bastard.”

When Gladio got into the passenger seat of the truck, Dave was giving him a look. "What?"

Dave shook his head. "Here I thought you were looking forward to seeing what she can do, what with her having the Marshals attention and all." he started the truck up and slowly pulled out of the camp. “It’s not just for the company you know.”

"Yeah, I want to see her skills, but not while on such a dangerous hunt. These red giants are nothing like their iron giant brothers. They are faster and smarter and you will get killed if you are not careful." Gladio looked out the window as they drove. "Cor is the one who told me to keep an eye on her. This way I know she'll be out of harms way."

"Well, whatever your reason is, just know that the Marshal took her with him often on his missions. Not just for...whatever it is they've got going on. She is one of the best hunters here and is just as competent as Monica. In leaving her here, you're going into this at less power than what you have available."

Gladio was silent for the rest of the drive.

Half an hour later, the truck was pulling to a stop not far from a camp area. One of the red giants was seen not too far from here and so they decide to walk the rest of the way so as to not draw any unnecessary attention to themselves. Dave took his guns from the trunk and offered one to Gladio, who turned it down. Dave shrugged and tucked it into his belt. They made their way silently through the darkness towards where the last giant had been spotted. They met up with two more men that had gone in another truck and they signaled a sighting not far off.

"Alright, remember what I said. This thing is powerful and has reach. Be especially wary of his area attack. That thing knocks you down and you're likely to get killed before you get back up."

The group fell silent again as they moved towards the large red glow coming from the flaming sword the red giant held. They could hear other things skittering around in the darkness, but they seemed to be keeping their distance from the giant, at least for now. The next sounds to be heard came from Gladio as he summoned his blade and led the charge. The group attacked from all sides, hoping to end things quickly, but the red giants armor was nothing to snuff at. Gunshots sounded as Dave and another hunter unloaded on it, the bullets barely doing any damage to it as they tried to find weak points. Gladio hacked at the legs trying to get it to drop while the forth hunter darted in and out trying to get his blades between the gaps in armor. Trees around them burst into flame from the sword, providing the hunters with more light, but also making more of a danger for them. The hunter that was beside Gladio let out a yell as one of the giants large arms struck him and sent him flying. He crashed into a large boulder with a sickening crack. He did not get back up.

"Shit, keep at it guys, we got this!" Gladio yelled. He leapt up into the air and brought his sword down on the giants head and all the way down the front of its body. It let out an angry yell and turned its attention towards him. "Don't let up! Not much more left 'till he drops!"

After ten more minutes of dodging attacks, attacking whenever possible, and much more swearing, the red giant finally dropped to its knees and slowly broke up into black charcoal and blew away in the wind as it hit the ground. Gladios sword disappeared and he leaned forward with his hands on his knees for a moment to catch his breath. "Yo, everyone alright?"

The fire around them had thankfully burned out and not spread too far in the forest. Dave jogged over to the boulder where the other hunter had been thrown and crouched down to check on him. "He's alive but needs healing fast."

Gladio ran over and used his last potion on the hunter to stabilize him. "Let's get back to the campsite. He's not going to be able to fight anymore tonight."

Dave and the other hunter lifted the injured man up and each put an arm around him to keep him on his feet. "I'm afraid I'd just slow you down at this point. I ran out of ammo awhile ago and my ankle's been twisted. Again.” He said with a bit of a chuckle, referring to the first time they had met. “You and Steve should go ahead to the next point. The others are probably going to need more help."

Another short drive from the campsite was the next target. When Gladio and Steve arrived, they found the others just finishing off the red giant. After checking in and tending to injuries when needed, Gladio and the rest were making their way to the third mark. Once again Gladio was relieved to find that the group had taken down the red giant and there were no life threatening injuries. When they reached the location for the forth giant is when things took a darker turn.

Lots of blood, pieces of clothing, and unidentifiable parts were found at the last location. Dust floated through the air with what remained of the hunters, but the giant itself was nowhere to be seen. The remaining hunters from the other groups began to frantically search the area for any survivors, or the giant, but came up empty. The night was not silent though and screams filled the air. The smell of smoke filled his nose and embers floated on the wind. Gladio ran for the break in the tree line and stopped short.

Lestallum was burning.

Gladio shouted over his shoulders to anyone that was behind him and took off running for the city. Injured and possibly dead civilians lay scattered across the road while most of the buildings along the street were destroyed and on fire. His heart was pounding wildly as he continued to run forward, thankful that Iris was now safe down at Cape Caem. A loud roar shook the night around them and the red giant came stumbling into view from between some buildings. It was only after he leapt to attack it did Gladio notice that the giant was missing one of its arms. The arm that usually held its flaming sword.   
The giant turned towards him as he attacked and made an odd movement. As Gladios blade dug into its remaining arm, the giant dropped to its knees, letting out another angry cry. Gladio leapt backwards just as its hand came around to swat at him. Shouting was heard before the giant was forced backwards and to the ground. Before Gladio could process what was happening, a figure leapt out of the smoke and drove a sword through the giants neck. It thrashed around for a moment before it let out one final cry and disintegrated. 

Before he had a chance to approach the person, more daemon screams filled the night. A pair of megaloclaw came out of nowhere and surrounded the hunter. Gladio let out a yell of warning as one leapt from behind. The hunter spun and ducked down under the daemon as it launched itself over them. The hunter thrust twin blades up into its stomach as he flew overhead, gutting it. It fell to the ground in a heap and did not get up again. The second one charged head own and took multiple swipes at the hunter. Just as Gladio was getting within strike range, the hunter’s weapon changed back to the sword. It was thrust out and around and severed the daemons head from its shoulders. With the last of the daemon killed, the hunter paused to take a breath.

"That was incredible!" Gladio shouted out as he jogged over. "I've never seen anyone move quite like that bef- Ruby?" he stopped and stared as the hunter lowered the hood that had been hiding their face. She was covered in black blood from the daemons but she was wearing a wide grin, her eyes wild with excitement. She barely registered that he was there before turning and running into the burning buildings behind her. "Hey, wait!"

Gladio followed behind Ruby, helping people who needed helping, and did what he could to put out the fire. He was mostly useless with that and had only watched as ice shot up around the buildings and extinguished the flames.

"Damn, that was my last one." Ruby muttered after having used the potion. "Hey, is everyone alright?" she called out to the people around her.

Thankfully everyone for the most part had been able to escape harm from the daemons, aside from the people who had been out on the street, but a few had been caught in the fires. When the final tally would be taken later, a total of eight lives had been lost. It could have been far worse.

"Ruby!" A woman wearing a familiar suit shouted. Molly, from the power plant, ran over to her and gave her a hug. "Darling, if you had not been here, we'd have fared much worse." She looked around at all the injured and the destroyed buildings. "I can't believe that idea of yours actually worked!" it was then that she noticed the man behind her. "Oh, Gladio! When did you get here?"

There was more commotion as the other hunters finally caught up with Gladio. They quickly began going around and helping out those who needed it, Dave walking slowly towards them with a limp. "This should not have happened." he muttered as he came to a stop and leaned against a broken wall. "Since when do daemons directly attack a city like this? It's unnatural."

"It's the same." Ruby spoke to Dave, a scowl on her face. "It's the same as the one I told Cor about. The daemon have been acting too organized for what they are. Someone is controlling them. It's the only answer."

Gladio felt his blood run cold. He knew one person who may be able to accomplish such a thing. Of course, it has to be him. That bastard Ardyn.

"We can't know anything for sure yet." finally Ruby acknowledged his presence with a look. "We need to return to camp and inform Monica. The Marshal will need to know about this as well."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "Cor is already aware of the situation. It is why he went off on his mission." she turned her back on him and gave Molly another hug. "I need to go. Still have things to get done before the morning comes. I'll be back later to check up on everyone, alright?"

"Of course sweetie. Take care." Molly watched as Ruby took off on her own, then let out a sigh. "Still the same as ever."

Gladio raised a brow, "You know Ruby?"

"Oh yes, she saved my life a few years ago. She's been like a little sister to me ever since. She comes by and helps me out with the daemons that show up in the plant often." Her voice dropped a bit. "It scares me how much she loves to fight them, but there is no stopping her. I just do what I can to help her and keep her safe." Molly met Gladios eyes then. “You tell that Marshal if anything happens to her that I’m blaming him for it. That woman would do anything he’d ask of her, even if it meant her death.” She huffed a bit at her own words before pointing a finger at Gladio. “You better keep her safe, Gladio. She is pretty reckless.”

Gladio chuckled at that. “You are not the first one to tell me that. We only just met yesterday so I don’t know her that well yet. She’s been pretty…distant from me. I think she’s actually mad at me.” He rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. “For a good reason.”

“Listen to me Gladiolus. You befriend her and you have a friend for life. She would do anything to help you in whatever way she can. Just don’t take advantage of that.” Molly looked in the direction that Ruby had run off in. “I do wonder where she’s gone off to this time. With all that just happened, normally she would have stayed around to help more. Do you have any ideas?”

“No, but now I’m wondering what she’s up to as well. I better go off and follow her before I lose track of her. The other hunters are still around so make sure to ask them for whatever you need. We are here to help.” With a nod he ran off to chase after Ruby.

It took him a few minutes of running through the city, asking people along the way if they’d seen her, before he finally found her out at the overlook. She was leaning on the rails next to one of the long range binoculars with her head down and shoulders slumped. When he got closer to her, he could see her shoulders trembling. He paused a moment wondering if he should leave her alone or not. 

Ruby did not hear the Shield behind her. She moved to look through the binoculars and scanned the area, muttering to herself as she looked. “There!” 

She was turning around and running before she had fully looked ahead of herself and crashed right into Gladio. He stumbled back at the force of it and crashed back against the wall behind him. His arms instinctively wrapped around her as they fell back against the wall.

“Whoa, easy there! What’s your rush?”

Ruby pushed her hands on his chest and leaned back to look up at him. “Let go.” She moved away once his arms dropped to his sides. She put her fingers to her lips and gave a loud whistle. A moment later an orange and yellow chocobo appeared. She immediately hopped up onto its back and turned down the street. “They are close so we have to move fast.”

Gladio quickly snatched the reins of the chocobo to keep Ruby from taking off again. “Wait up, Ruby. Will you please tell me what the hell is going on? You keep taking off every time I try and talk to you!”

Ruby looked down at him, “Daemons. I need to hunt. They are close and the city is still vulnerable right now.” She looked in the direction she had been with a worried look on her face. “Gladio, it’s the rest of the megaloclaw pack.” She looked again in the direction that she had seen the pack. Their cries were now close enough to be heard from where they were. She tugged the reins from his grip. “I can’t let them get any closer!”

Gladio was already pulling the whistle from his pocket and calling for his own ride. A forest green colored chocobo came running up to him from where the rest of the hunters had come from the forest. He quickly jumped up onto its back and snapped the reins. “Let’s go then. They aren’t going to hunt themselves.” With a grin, he took off ahead of her.

Ruby was right on his heels, not giving an inch, as they raced towards the pack that was down the hill and making their way towards the city. When the daemons came within sight, both of the hunters pulled to a stop and hopped down off of their mounts. 

“I have been waiting for you to yell at me to leave.” Ruby admitted as they quickly ran towards the megaloclaws. “Not that I’d listen to you.”

“Yeah, I figured that much out when you showed up here after being ordered to remain at camp.” Gladio materialized his weapon and charged forward to the closest daemon.

“There is only one person,” Ruby dodged to the side as one of the daemon made a swipe at her. “That I will take orders from. Well, two I guess.” Her daggers slashed out in a counter strike after blocking the attack. The daemon let out a yowl of pain as the strikes connected, not deep enough to do as much damage as she’d hoped. 

“I know that Cor is one, but who is the second? Obviously not me.” Gladio grunted as one of the daemon slammed into his side, sending him rolling to the ground, but he quickly rolled up onto his feet.

“Monica.” She dodged backwards to avoid a bite attack and just barely missed being clawed by a second. She let out a hiss of pain as one of the claws managed to scrape down her arm. She briefly glanced down at it to make sure it wasn’t serious, before letting out a laugh.

Gladio turned his head enough to look at the woman beside him when he heard her laughing while fighting. She was grinning like when she’d been fighting earlier and attacking so fast that the megaloclaw was dodging out of her way instead. Her moves were as fast and smooth as Ignis’ and that was saying a lot. That light in her eyes though along with the grin told him that she fought for different reasons than most probably do. She wasn’t doing this just to protect. She was doing this because she thought it was fun.

The Shield found himself grinning back in return. He also had fun when battling and fighting for his life. It made him feel more alive. Sure, he’d be fine with a world with no daemon, and was eagerly waiting for Noctis to return to make that so, but right now this was his life. He’d worry about what came next when Noctis returned. It had already been a year; it couldn’t possibly take that much longer. Unknown to him then, it would be nine more before his saw his friend again.

At a loud yell from the woman next to him, Gladio was pulled back into the present time. He turned fully this time, to offer help, only to see Ruby on the back of the megaloclaw with her daggers driven deep into its neck. She held onto them tightly, her legs holding onto its body, as it bucked around wildly trying to get her off. With a twist of the daggers, the daemon let out one last cry before dropping to the ground dead. She looked over and caught his eye, still grinning, and gave him a wink before jumping off the body of that daemon to go fight the next.

Gladio had never seen anything more arousing in his life.

With only one of the daemons left at this point, they teamed up to take it down faster. They danced and moved around each other as if they’d been fighting side by side for years. Ruby instinctively seemed to know just when to strike, when to duck one of his attacks, or even the perfect timing when she launched herself off of him to drive her sword through the last megaloclaw’s mouth and into its head. She pulled the blade out and shook the black blood off then the blade disappeared. She watched as the last of the corpses turned to ash and floated away.

“You really are a great fighter. I, uh, should have taken you along from the start.” Gladio walked over to stand by her side and put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m sorry. You have every right to be pissed at me.” He chuckled, “You do have impressive sword handling skills.” 

Ruby turned towards him, her smile gone, but her eyes still blazing. Wordlessly she shrugged off his hand only to put them on his chest and shove him hard into the tree behind him. He winced with the impact and nearly fell from the unexpectedness of it. Before he could form any type of response, she was on him.

Gladio let out a startled grunt as she jumped up and wrapped her legs around him, her mouth crushing down on his own. His arms wrapped around her out of instinct to keep her from falling. He couldn’t help the groan that escaped his throat as her hands wound into his hair and tugged. When she rolled her body against his, he let out a growl and turned them around so she was pressed into the tree instead. He pulled away from her kiss to stare into those crystal blue eyes.

Ruby looked at him with heated eyes, the pupils blown, her breathing heavy from more than just the fighting now. Her body trembled and her fingers continued to pull at him with need. Fighting had the same effect on him and so he knew exactly what she was feeling. It was the need for more and to keep fighting. With nothing left to fight, that adrenalin needed somewhere else to go.

“You sure?” he asked, leaning forward to nuzzle his mouth against her ear. “I’m not Cor you know.”

“Yes, Gladio, please.” She arched her neck when his lips traveled down and nipped at it. She rolled her hips against his again making them both moan. “Just fuck me already. I need it.”

It was so dangerous to do this outside, especially at night not at a campsite, but Gladio could not resist his more primal urge. Apparently neither could Ruby. They made quite the pair. He was wondering if this is what Cor had meant when he said that they’d probably get along well together. They were pretty similar.

Hands pulled frantically at clothes, tossing them to the side in desperation to get to as much skin as possible. He had barely gotten his pants open before her hands were diving in and stroking him to full hardness. She pushed him back a bit with her free hand so she could lean forward and start caressing his skin with her lips and teeth. He let out a pleased groan when she attacked his nipples. Normally the women he slept with didn’t even try, but it seemed that Ruby was a very active partner. It was great for him considering they were one of his erogenous zones. Her legs let go of his waist and she slowly kissed down his body until her mouth joined her hand.

“Shit.” Gladio sucked in a sharp breath as her mouth closed around his tip, then slowly disappeared inside the warm cavern of her mouth. One of his hands rested gently on the top of her head, fingers winding through her short hair, not pushing, but just holding. “Fuck!” he growled out a moment later when her hand squeezed his balls just as she sunk all the way down him as far as she could take him. It took everything he had not to thrust into her mouth. “You, ugh, you really do have impressive sword handling skills.”

She popped off of him with a chuckle. “Thank you. I haven’t seen enough of yours yet though.” She pushed her pants down and off and leaned back against the tree with a smirk. “I’m waiting to be impressed, Gladiolus.”

He moved forward in an instant and picked Ruby up right off her feet. She let out a laugh as he moved carefully around so as not to fall, and lay her down in the grass. He didn’t want the bark of the tree to tear up her skin and hurt her. If they were in a safe place, he would take his time to devour her slowly, learn every dip and curve of her until he was satisfied and she was a quivering mess. That not being the case, he leaned down with his hands on either side of her head and brought his face close to hers. 

“Heh, it would be rude of me to keep a lady waiting.” He rubbed his hard cock along her slickness slowly to tease her, and to make sure he was well coated. “You think you can take me like this?” he asked, more seriously.

Ruby grinned up at him. “As you said before, you are not Cor. Don’t worry though, you certainly don’t have anything to be ashamed about!” she cut herself off with a long moan as he slid partway into her. Her hands flew to his back and her nails dug in, trying to pull him closer. “Gods, don’t you dare stop.”

Gladio chuckled as he slowly slid inside of the tight heat, having to stop once fully sheathed just as much for himself as for her. He sucked in a breath when she started rolling her hips beneath him, not afraid to take her own pleasure. Her hands slid up into his hair again and pulled, something she seemed to like doing, and brought him down to her so she could kiss him.

“W-well? I’m waiting, Gladio.” Ruby’s breath was shaky as she spoke through her grin. She leaned up and pressed her breast against him and as much of herself as she could. 

His hands slid down her body slowly, teasing her nipples along the way and gently squeezing each breast until she let out a needy whine, then they slid around under her ass. “Better hang on then.” Gladio rolled his hips back and then drove forward with one powerful thrust. Ruby’s eyes opened wide at the force of it and her head rolled back against the ground. He did it again, just as hard but pulled out more slowly, this time pulling her down to meet him. Her whole body shuddered and she gasped out something but he couldn’t quite make out what it was.

Having given a teaser, Gladio quickly began to pick up the pace. His arms slid down and under her legs to lift her up more and pull her even closer every time he thrust into her. Her hips rolled and thrust back against his with each movement, causing both hunters to moan in pleasure. When she tried sitting up, he removed his arms from under her legs and leaned back on them instead. This changed the angle of his thrusts and her eyes shot open wide on his next one and she let out a loud and deep moan.

“F-fuck, do that again.” Her eyes rolled back as he continued to thrust into her at this new angle. “There! Yes, gods, don’t stop.” She moved her own hands behind her as well to keep her at the same angle. Her moans started coming faster together and she slid a hand down her body between her legs to add extra stimulation.

Seeing this, Gladio cursed and replaced her hand with one of his. His whole body was shaking from the strain of the position and from the amount of pleasure. 

“Fuck, Ruby, fuck!” he groaned particularly loud as her nails scrapped over his chest just as she clamped tight around him. Every time he pulled out of her, she clenched around him, trying to pull him right back in. “You feel so fucking good around my cock.”

Ruby giggled and sank her teeth into his neck and sucked hard until she left marks. “Mm, and you fill me up so damn good.” She let out a loud moan as his thrusts started hitting her gspot. “Oh fuck Gladio, so close. Please…” her hands slid around to his back to pull him closer. “More.”

He thumbed her clit faster until she moaned his name over and over again as his body went ridged as her orgasm washed over her. Even when she went pliant as it passed, she did not stop her thrusting and rocking back, helping Gladio towards his own end.

When he felt himself start to twitch and his thrusts stuttered, he quickly pulled out and finished himself between her thighs. He groaned deeply as he spilled between her and the ground, and then nearly collapsed on top of her when his own orgasm ended. He rolled so they lay side by side, staring up at the star filled sky.

Gladio turned his head to look at the woman beside him and found she was laying on her side, watching him. She gave him a smile and leaned over to give him a long kiss.

“Okay, now I am impressed with your sword skills.” Ruby grinned and gave him a wink before slowly getting up to her feet. She began pulling on her clothes as she found him, but Gladio hadn’t moved yet. “While it’s nice to know I blew your mind, you probably should start getting dressed. With the noise you made, more daemon are probably heading this way.”

Gladio sat up and chuckled. “With the noise I made? I’m pretty sure you were the one screaming my name a moment ago.”

“Oh, I was definitely screaming your name. I’m not used to being so vocal either, so you get extra points for that.” She rolled his eyes as he visibly inflated at the stroking of his ego. “But,” she walked over to where he now stood pulling his pants back on. “you were the one whimpering and groaning my name like a beast.” Ruby gave his bare ass a swat. “Now let’s get back to the city. I need a bath and a soft bed under me.”

Considering how late it was, Gladio and Ruby did end up staying the night at the hotel instead of finding a camping spot. Neither minded camping; Gladio was actually thrilled to hear that Ruby loved it, but with what just happened with the daemons, they both wanted to be in the city should they be needed. They got one room to share but with double beds. Gladio was once again left in confusion when Ruby seemed to become very shy and wouldn’t even look at him when they talked. When he asked her about it, she turned beet red.

“I…don’t know why it happens. I guess I just feel more at place fighting than I do with anything else. I’m not so good around people.” Ruby shrugged and turned away from Gladio, unable to maintain eye contact for longer. “I know the others at camp tease me about it, but I can’t help it. Sometimes I even embarrass myself with how I act when I’m fighting.” She sat on the bed and pulled her knees up to her chest, arms wrapping around them. “When I fight, I just get so excited. I don’t want that feeling to stop, but it builds up inside of me until it feels like my chest is going to explode. If there is nothing left around to fight…”

“Is that how you are Cor got together?” Gladio was also lying on his bed, on his side with his head propped in a hand. He watched Ruby as she spoke, finding this shy side of her to be adorable.

“Yes.” She spoke into her knees and was soft enough that he almost couldn’t hear her. “Having sex was actually his idea. He told me that many people get ‘battle fever’ and need to let out their excess energy. Something to do with adrenalin, but I was only half listening to him at that point. Needless to say, I was very surprised when Cor offered himself to help me release. We…got on very well together. It started becoming more regular after the first time. So much so that even when I hadn’t been fighting I just get all wound up being around him. When he’s gone for long periods of time, I’m told that I become pretty quiet and retreat into a shell. Or bite people’s heads off.”

“Hm, good thing I’m here this time then. He’s probably going to be gone for awhile on his mission.” Gladio rolled into a seated position on the edge of the bed. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees, eyes still watching Ruby. “Use me instead. Well, use isn’t quite right. Why don’t we help each other out? I get pent up too and we are pretty compatible. Not just on the battlefield but with the sex as well.”

Ruby slowly lifted her face from her knees and turned on the bed to face him. “That…could work.” She bit her lip and looked away from him, her cheeks pink from more than just the shower she recently finished. 

“Sounds like there is a ‘but’ somewhere in there. Just tell me what’s on your mind. I’d rather get everything out and up front. It will make things better for both of us that way.”

“I get really wound up when I fight. I mean really wound up. Cor commented more than once his surprise at the amount of stamina I have. He often followed that with a joke about his age and how he can’t keep up with me. I don’t want to put a strain on you with this.”

Gladio laughed and stood up from the bed. “The only strain will be on my pants.” He moved over and sat beside Ruby on the bed, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into his arms. “I’m actually glad to hear you say that. I’m still pretty wound up.” He rubbed his nose in her freshly washed hair, taking in the herbal scent of the shampoo she used. His face lowered to her neck where he placed a kiss where it met her shoulder. She let out a sigh and her head fell to the side to allow better access. “Are you still wound up too?”

“Mm.” Ruby moved an arm back and reached up to tangle a hand into his hair, lightly scratching her nails along his scalp and making him shiver.

While he kissed her neck, Gladio’s hands slid up under her shirt to cup her breasts. Since she had dressed for bed, there was no barrier underneath. “Then in that case, why don’t we help each other wind down?” he adjusted himself so he was sitting behind her leaning against the headboard of the bed while she leaned back against his chest.

“Gods yes.”

Gladio pulled off her shirt and she wiggled out of her shorts, nothing underneath those either. When she caught the look in his eyes, she smiled and blushed. 

“We’re not in a rush now like before.” He watched as she turned around to face him, then he gently guided her down so she was on her back. “In fact, I’m going to take my time to really enjoy you now. If this is going to be a regular thing, I want to learn everything about you that I can. Starting with what makes you moan and scream my name like before.”

“You’ll have to work for that, Gladiolus.” Ruby teased. “It won’t be that easy every time.”

“Oh, I hope not.” He leaned down and kissed her deeply, leaving her trembling after. “It’s not fun if it’s easy.”

Gladio began to kiss slowly down Ruby’s body, over as much skin as he could reach, and running his tongue along the scars he found. They were scattered over her smooth skin and varied in severity. Some were barely noticeable but a few looked like they could have turned deadly. He would ask about those some other time, right now he was too busy worshiping her body.

Ruby squirmed a bit under his caressing hands and mouth, enjoying the feeling but they were sometimes light enough that they were a little ticklish. When his tongue dipped into her navel, she let out a whimper. When his mouth moved lower she arched up off of the bed and wound a hand into the blanket. He chuckled against her stomach as his teeth grazed the skin there, heading towards one of her hips, and then sucked at the juncture of hip and leg.

“F-fuck!” she nearly shouted and her body quivered. He had found one of her more sensitive spots. 

Gladio attacked her erogenous zone mercilessly with his mouth while his hands slid down to caress the insides of her thighs. He kept his gaze locked on hers while he kissed and nipped his way inward stopping before he reached her heat. He could smell her arousal and it made him groan. He wasted no time in latching his mouth onto her mound and taking a long and slow taste of her. She was already dripping and he had not even really done much yet.

Lifting his head, he grinned. “A bit eager are we?”

She glared down at him and dug her fingers into his hair. “Don’t you have something better to be doing with that mouth of yours?”

His grin turned into a smirk. Saying nothing, he slid a finger into Ruby’s tight heat with no warning. She gasped and cursed, gripping his hair and the sheets tighter as her body rocked towards him. He very slowly started sliding his finger in and out of her, his free hand gripping one of her hips to hold her down on the bed. She was panting fast and whimpering but she still would not call out for him.

What a stubborn woman. He did always like a challenge.

When his mouth met her dripping heat again, he slid in another finger. This time he started pumping them in and out faster and curling them on the way out. Her body continued to jerk and quiver beneath him while her tight passage gripped his fingers desperate for something else. His tongue swirled around her clit and he sucked hard while his fingers inside of her curled again and twisted.

“Gladio!” her voice was rough and long needy moan followed his name.

There we go. He thought as he continued to ravage her with his mouth. He didn’t stop until she was moaning loudly and screaming his name again. A rush of warm liquid coated his fingers as her body clenched around his fingers as she finally came.

“Mm, I love the way you scream my name.” Gladio sat up on his knees and made a show of licking her juices off his fingers and hand. “We haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”

“Then what are you waiting for?” Ruby asked with a shaky grin. She sat up on the bed and got up onto her knees to face him. Her hands found their way into his hair as her mouth locked with his. 

Gladio groaned as her tongue fought with his, finding it more arousing that she seemed eager to lick her own essence from his mouth. He proceeded to kiss her deeply as she rocked against him. He let out a strangled moan as one of her hands had found its way into the sweatpants he wore and grasped him firmly.

“I think it’s time you gave me another demonstration of your sword skills.” She pulled away from him and winked. 

Ruby leaned down and slid his pants down as far as they could go in his current kneeling position. Giving him a shove, she got him so he way laying flat on his back before ripping off his pants the rest of the way. Her eyes roamed freely over his naked body, taking in every detail that she could. Her hands rubbed up his muscular thighs as she crawled up his body. Her mouth placed a teasing kiss and a lick to the leaking head of his cock as she continued up. She delighted in the way his body shivered and the way he was biting his lip. She paused a moment to admire the look on him before straddling his hips. Taking his hard cock in hand, she positioned it at her entrance before impaling herself on it. If they had not had sex just a short time before, she would not have been able to take him in so quickly. He was long and thick, though not quite as big as Cor, but still bigger than average.

Gladio let out a long groan as her tight heat engulfed his cock, “Fuck babe, you take me like no one else. Just don’t hurt yourself.”

Ruby snorted as she leaned down to kiss him. “I’ve said it already, you are not Cor.” She slowly lifted herself up and slammed herself back down on him fully sheathing him inside again and making them both moan. “but your cock still feels amazing. H-hits all the right spots.” She circled her hips and continued the slow rising and hard falling setting a steady pace. “Mm, so deep.”

At the mention of Cor again, Gladio let out a growl and grabbed her hips. He was going to fuck her until she couldn’t remember the Marshal’s name. He was going to make it so that he was the one she was yearning for and getting all wet and desperate for. Keeping a firm hold of her hips, he arched his body up the next time she rose up, slamming himself deeper into her than she was doing herself.

“You’ve not felt deep yet, Ruby.” His hips sped up their thrusting, bouncing Ruby up into the air with the power of his thrusts while his hands pulled her down to meet them. 

A yell of pleasure left her throat, uncaring of who heard her. No one else existed right now except for the man beneath her. As Gladio pounded up into her, she leaned forward to lock their mouths together. Her teeth tugged at his bottom lip before her tongue slid inside to battle with his. Gladios pace didn’t falter as he kissed her as deep and passionately as he fucked her. She continued to moan into his mouth and it only encouraged him to keep going.

Gladio finally rolled them over so she was underneath him again. He grabbed her legs and looped his arms under them so he could move closer to her before pounding into her harder and faster than before. The bed was starting to slide across the wooden floor at this point and starting to hit the wall. He didn’t care.

“Fuck Gladio, harder.” Her nails dug into his back as she held on tight to him. “Faster.”

“I hope you don’t regret that demand later.” He growled into her ear before tugging on the lobe with his teeth. 

His angle shifted so he could comply with her demands. With that first thrust her eyes were flying wide open and she was wrapping her arms around his neck. Her legs squeezed around his arms and tried pulling him even closer. He allowed them to fall to his sides and she immediately wrapped them around his waist.

The pace was fast and hard enough that the bed was banging continuously against the wall like a drum beat while Ruby moaned and screamed his name like the most beautiful song he’d ever heard. There was no doubt that everyone else in the hotel heard her as well and it made his ego swell with pride.

“Gladio, please.” Ruby’s mouth was at his throat kissing and nipping until she left marks. A sob escaped her throat as her womanhood throbbed. “Don’t stop. Please don’t stop!” She was about to go over the edge and needed it so badly.

“Y-yeah, fuck yeah.” His arms were shaking from the strain of holding himself up for so long at this angle and pace, but he didn’t care. When she started clenching around him, his head dropped to her shoulder. “Come for me. Come now, Ruby.” 

“G-Gladiolus!” her breathing stopped for a moment as her full body arched up off of the bed. Full body tremors wracked her body as she came.

“I got you.” Gladio barely got the words out before he was crying out with his own release. 

When he finally felt the last of the aftershocks leave his body, he lifted his head to meet hazy blue eyes glazed over with satisfaction. They shared an open mouth kiss as they both fought for air. The kiss became deeper a moment later and she clenched around him making him groan, still sensitive from the orgasm he just had. When she did it again, he lifted his head with a chuckle.

“You must really like my kisses, huh? You’re still holding onto me so tightly.”

“Cor refuses to kiss me.” Ruby broke eye contact with Gladio. “He says that it’s too intimate.” She turned to look at him again and was surprised to see anger in his eyes. She tilted her head on the pillow and reached up to run a hand through his hair. “Why are you mad?”

“Cor is a fucking idiot.” Gladio leaned down and proceeded to kiss Ruby as if he were making love to her with his mouth. The way she was responding to him and clinging to him just made him put more effort into making her feel good. His body was already responding to her hold on him and he started rocking into her again, still inside her from the previous round.

Ruby let out a soft moan as Gladio began moving inside her again. This time was different though. It was not hurried like the first time nor was it desperate like the second. This time it was slow and drawn out. Gladio wasn’t fucking her this time, he was making love to her. 

After getting two more orgasms from Ruby and another of his own, the pair finally collapsed against the mattress spent. After cleaning up and moving to the other bed, Gladio wrapped his arms around the woman at his side and held her tightly against him. They had only just met but already he felt a connection to her that was more than their sexual compatibility.

He decided right then that there was no way that he was going to give Ruby back up to Cor when he returned. He was going to make her his.


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A simple mission goes wrong. Prompto to the rescue.

By the time Gladio and Ruby made it back to the hunter camp the following morning, all the others were there waiting. Knowing looks were sent towards Gladio and gil was exchanged. He later found out from Dave that there was a bet going on for how long it would take him and Ruby to hook up. To his surprise, Monica guessed right. When he asked her about it, she just shrugged and said it's because she knew that he and Ruby would get along very well.   
Ruby herself was very embarrassed about it. She hadn't actually realized that everyone knew that she and Cor had been having sex. Now they knew she was with Gladio as well and could only imagine what everyone must think about her. She had grabbed a bag from her tent, climbed onto a chocobo, and then went out for a ride, saying that she was doing a perimeter check.  
After Gladio had told Monica everything that happened with the red giants and then in Lestallum, he got on a chocobo and went after Ruby.

He searched the area for a solid two hours for her but had not seen any traces of her. Just as he was about to give up, he caught sight of her yellow and orange chocobo. It was pacing around at the bottom of a rocky cliff face and squawking as it tried to climb up the rock only to slide back down. Scanning the area knowing she wouldn't be too far, he finally spotted her. She was up on the rocks sitting down under an overhang barely visible from where he was. If not for the chocobo, he never would have found her. 

Gladio hopped off his chocobo and scaled the rock face rather quickly. He found many easy hand hold and foot rests on the way up that he realized she probably came up here often enough that the rock was worn. Once at the top, he could see some cushions, water bottles, and even a radio there confirming his guess.

"Hey, nice spot you have here." he said with a grin as he sat down on the ground beside her. "Great view." Fields stretched out below them with the road in the far distance. He could see the city from here too. It would probably look beautiful at night.

"Yeah. It's a nice place to come when you want to relax, or be alone to think." Ruby had acknowledged him when he arrived but she wasn't looking at him. Instead, she was focusing on one of the daggers in her hand, idly spinning and twisting it around her fingers.

"Am I bothering you then? I could go if you want." he made to get up when she was silent for a moment, but paused when she reached over and grabbed his hand. He sat back down and leaned back on his hands. "You shouldn't let what they say bother you."

Ruby turned and looked at him then, the blade in her hand vanishing into blue crystals. "I don't appreciate being made fun of. It made me angry, so I left before I started hitting them. I've known some of them for years, so it was pretty disappointing that they would do something like that. It doesn't sound like my uncle tried to stop them either." After she had left the camp, her embarrassment and quickly turned into anger. After all she had no reason to be embarrassed but the others did for acting that way. She and Cor were adults and what they did was no one else’s business.

"Your uncle?"

"Dave."

Gladio's brows shot up. "Dave's your uncle? No wonder why he seemed so protective of you. I'd asked him about it and he only said that he was just looking out for his fellow hunter."

"He would say that. He tries not to give me any special treatment, like I asked him to. He took care of me for a big chunk of my life although we never became super close. It wasn’t until I met up with him again recently that we started becoming closer, like real family.”

Gladio thought about his friends and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, we gotta hold onto what we can, especially with everything going to hell." he started to feel guilty about not keeping in touch with Ignis and Prompto so much lately. They all kind of went and did their own things when it came apparent that Noctis wouldn't be back anytime soon.

"I'm worried about Cor." Ruby said softly, a sadness in her eyes as she turned them towards the view in front of them. "I know it's only been a few days, but normally he at least calls to check in. Monica said that she hasn't heard from him at all yet. With the increase in both daemon activity and soldiers from the Empire…"

“He will be fine.” He had wondered if she would bring up Cor. "He is on a difficult mission. He may not be in a safe enough place to call. I wouldn't worry so much about his safety though. The Marshal is the strongest man that I know. He's called The Immortal for a reason." he put a hand on Ruby’s shoulder and gave her a smile. "He'll come back, don't worry."

Three weeks. It was three weeks before Cor finally made contact with Monica saying that he was on his way back. When he finally made it back to camp only two hunters and a Crownsguard were with him. They were in rough shape and exhausted, but they were back. Cor deposited his bag in his tent and came back out to find that the others had gathered around, wanting to hear what had happened. He sat down in a chair with a sigh and accepted the flask of water he was given.

"We have succeeded in destroying the base, so in that sense the mission was a success. There will be no more soldiers made there anytime soon." Cor took a long drink of water from the flask, wiping his mouth when done. "There were, however, complications."

"It must have been bad if it took you this long." Gladio said.

"When we were making our exit, a drop ship appeared. It was not MT soldiers that were dropped off, but a Cerberus. Half the team was wiped out in the first attack. The rest of us retreated, but it hunted us. Even in the daylight we had no reprieve from it. In the end, I think it was called off of us. Not wanting to take any risks of leading it here, we took the long route back." He looked around at the group in front of him. "It appears that your missions were successful as well."

"We lost some people and Lestallum was badly damaged. One of the red giants attacked it directly, and then there was a pack of megaloclaws right after. It was a rough night." It was Ruby who spoke up. Gladio did not miss the way her eyes were roaming over his body, filled with worry. "We have sent a few hunters there to keep watch and to help put up some extra defenses. They are getting more daring with their attacks."

Cor nodded and then stood up. "I will follow up with each of you later. For now, I am in much need of proper sleep. If you can hold off any more questions for me until later, I would appreciate it." 

Ruby watched Cor head into his tent and it took everything in her not to follow him. At a touch on her arm, she looked up to see Gladio smiling down at her.

"I told you he would be fine. Let him rest and then you can talk to him later."

Ruby let out a long, slow breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. "Yeah." slowly her knees went weak and she started to sink to the ground, but Gladio grabbed her waist and held her up. Her head fell forward to lean against his chest. "Thanks." she took a few deep breaths and then looked up at him. "I'm just so relieved to see him."

Keeping his hand on her waist, Gladio led her to an area off to the side behind one of the tents out of the way. "Come on, take some more deep breaths for me. Your breathing is way too fast. You're going to make yourself pass out." she did as she was told, but he could still feel her shaking. He leaned back against the stone wall behind him and pulled her against his chest, gently putting a hand on her head and having her lay on him. "Listen to my breathing and match it."

Ruby let her eyes fall closed and turned her full attention to Gladio. His heartbeat was strong and steady in his chest, as was his breathing. Slowly she calmed herself until her breaths went in and out smoothly. She took another deep breath, turning her face more into his chest, and took in his scent. It already had a pretty soothing effect on her, but it also had an arousing one. Her hands slowly began to wander up the back of his vest along his bare skin to caress his back while her lips brushed across his torso. His chuckle vibrated through his chest and she looked up at him with a smirk.

"Feeling better now?"

She stood up on her toes and he leaned down to give her the kiss she was asking for. Ruby wrapped her arms around his neck and didn't let him go. She nibbled on his lower lip before deepening the kiss. She gave a pleased hum when his arms wrapped around her waist and held her up against him. They stood like that for a few minutes, simply holding each other and kissing, before they slowly broke apart. Gladio ran the back of his fingers across her cheek and she nuzzled into it.

"I have to go feed the chocobo."

"Yeah." he waiting for her to leave only to realize he still had his arms tight around her. He grinned as he let her go, and then swatted her ass as she turned around.

"You better be ready later. I plan on taking you for a ride." With a wink, Ruby sauntered off to go take care of her duties.

Around two in the afternoon, Cor made an appearance again. He looked much better than when he had first arrived back at camp but there were still dark circles under his eyes. He headed over to where the food was kept to get himself something to eat. Ruby was there cutting up some meat that would be seasoned and dried later. When she saw him, she pulled a plate out from under the table somewhere that was filled with food.

"I knew you would be hungry when you woke up, so I saved you some of everything. Sorry that it's not hot anymore, but the taste should still be fine."

Cor took the offered plate with a nod of thanks. "It will be fine, thank you." he moved to sit on the nearest surface and proceeded to watch her while he ate. He was worried that she would be depressed while he'd been gone for so long, knowing the attachment she had for him, but she looked good. Happy even. "I heard that you took down a red giant on your own."

Ruby paused in the cutting of the meat to look up at him. "Hardly. I had some help from Molly and some of the other women of the city. Those women in the power plant are not to be messed with." she said with a fond smile. "Then Gladio showed up at the end to get a strike in. I suppose he was helpful with the megaloclaws after that." she went back to slicing the meat down for jerky.

"How have you two been getting on? I was worried that things might be awkward considering what happened before I left." His brows went up slightly at the color that came to her cheeks.

"Oh, we get along fine. We actually work very well together out in the field. We have the same rhythm and instinct for battle." Ruby began rubbing some seasonings into the meat, then wrapping them up in paper to set aside for later. "He was difficult at first though. He actually tried to bench me."

Cor chuckled, already knowing how that would have gone. "I heard that part. Monica said that you hadn't even waited five minutes before you took off after them on your chocobo." finishing the last of his food, Cor brought his plate over to set it to the side of where the hunter worked. "I also heard that you've been calmer and more outgoing."

Ruby chuckled and the sound brought a smile to Cor's lips. "It's nice to have someone to properly spar with. Gladio won't hold back for anyone. He's the only one who will fight me seriously, except for you." finishing up what she was working on, she turned her eyes to the man before her. "I really did miss you though. I admit that you had me very worried."

"Believe me when I say that if I could have checked in, I would have. We could not drop our guard even for a moment. We weren't even allowed to rest for more than a few minutes at a time, let alone sleep." he reached over and gave her hand a quick squeeze. "I'm sorry for worrying you." she squeezed it back before pulling away. He waited for her to come around to lead him off to his tent, but she did not, which surprised him. He had expected to be dragged off by her right away. "I have things to do now, so if you need me for anything, you know where I'll be."

Ruby nodded. "Okay. Gladio and I will be leaving very soon. We shouldn't be gone too long, but that will depend on the daemon activity." she started putting some earlier prepared food into a bag on the side of the table she'd been working on. "We've been doing extra patrols since the attack on Lestallum."

"That is a good idea. Are you still doing your maps? I have some information to add to them."

"Yeah, they are up in the reconnaissance tent along with some reports that just came in. I'm not sure if Monica has had a chance to look at them yet, she's been working nonstop since you've been gone. I bet she's happy to give up some of the workload. I've been trying to help out where I can, but I'm more of a fighter than anything."

"Don't sell yourself short, Ruby. You've been helpful in more ways to me than just fighting. You have a knack for knowing how the daemon will move which allows me to plan missions more effectively. Now I'll let you get back to what you were doing. Take care when you leave."

Ruby picked up her bag of supplies and headed for the chocobos. After loading her bag onto her chocobo, she went and found Gladio in his tent. He moved to pull her into his arms but she danced away with a smile. She crooked her finger at him as she headed out of the tent and he followed eagerly behind. He was confused when she led him to the chocobo and got up on it, and then took off with a laugh. He quickly followed behind.

"You know, when you said you were going to take me for a ride, this is not what I thought you meant!" Gladio shouted as the wind whipped past him from the speeds the chocobo were running. "Where are we even going? You still haven't told me anything."

"Oh, just going to pick up a few things. I guess you could say that this is a shopping trip."

Gladio frowned at that. They had been heading towards Lestallum but they curved around more eastward to go around it before going north again. Monica had not mentioned being in need of anything when they were talking earlier, so he really had no idea what this shopping trip was going to entail.

"We also need to keep an eye on the daemon activity and note any changes. I want to mark herd and den locations as well as their territories. They keep moving around and changing so much lately that it could be bad for us if we go in unprepared. After the thing with the red giants, I want to make sure we know everything that we can."

The pair of hunters continued to work their way north, marking out on a map everything that they came across, boundaries, and the location of resources they found along the way. For the most part they avoided any unnecessary battles, but they wiped out the more aggressive daemons as they came across them. The increase in activity was starting to cause problems for merchants when traveling between locations. If trade stopped then things would start to go downhill fast. As it was, prices were already starting to increase due to it being harder for them to get supplies. If there was a food shortage the people would riot.

The sky was starting to get darker when they stopped at a camp by the Vesperpool. Gladio was thankful when Ruby pulled food out of her bag and handed him a large sandwich stuffed with meats and cheese. There were also various fruits and a couple different drinks too.

"Is this a date?" he had joked as he took another mouthful of his sandwich. 

Her cheeks tinted pink, "Would it be bad if it was?"

The shield laughed and moved over to pull Ruby into his arms. "Are you dessert then?" he asked as he started to nibble on her neck. 

She swatted him away with a shake of his head. "Maybe, but not right now. There's only a little bit of daylight left and we have another stop to make. I want some eggs."

"Regaltrice eggs?" he asked with raised brows. He then recalled that they were Cor's favorite. "Ah, I get it."

Ruby tilted her head at his comment. "Get what?"

"The eggs, they are Cor's favorite. You didn't know?" He asked when her eyes widened in surprise. 

"No, I didn't know. I just wanted to get more nutrition into our meals and eggs are a good source of protein. I guess that is good to know. I'll have to make up something with the eggs tonight for him. He and the other two who came back with him are far from being in their top shape." she pulled a smaller bag out of the bigger one that she had brought with her. "Well, let's go. We're losing daylight."

Leaving what they didn't need at camp, Ruby and Gladio made their way to the area where the Regaltrice typically nested. They heard the squawking and clucking before they saw the birds. Dropping low to the ground, the pair slowly crept along towards an untended nest and the clutch of eggs it held. Gladio kept an eye out while Ruby collected a bag full of the eggs. None of the birds had noticed them, which he was thankful for since he'd rather not kill them. When the birds started to panic a moment later and all took off running, he became worried. A sound slowly made its way to his ears and he frowned trying to figure out what it was.

"Oh shit!" he yelled out as realization hit him.

The ground nearby burst open, sending dirt and rocks flying, caused by the giant snake like creature making itself known. The Midgardsormr had also come to hunt eggs for dinner and found two other predators instead. It turned its large fanged and hissing head at Gladio, having spotted him immediately, and shot forward to attack. He dove out of the way to avoid a direct hit, but he landed off balance and fell over. The snake was faster and made to strike him again before he could recover. A flash of red light and Ruby was there driving the creature back, her daggers driving into its face. The snake pulled back with an angry cry and slithered back a few paces, eyes locked onto both hunters.

"Watch out for its poison!" Gladio yelled as Ruby charged ahead, him following right behind her.

The battle was long and hard with just two of them. Even with Gladio using a power potion to up his strength temporarily, it took awhile to whittle the snake down. Not happy with how things were going, the snake lunged out and immediately coiled around Ruby and then began to squeeze. It snapped at Gladio when he drove his sword into its side trying to get it to release its grip on Ruby. She let out a scream of pain as she was crushed within its coils, weakly slashing at the scales with her sword. The sword vanished a second later following another yell of pain.

"Whoa now, this looks bad!" a new voice called out and the sound of gun fire followed it.

The Midgardsormr finally released its grip as it turned its full attention to the new arrival. It reared its head back and spit out a cloud of poison, sending all three people scrambling away, one more slowly than the others. Ruby knelt on the ground clutching her side fumbling for a remedy only to end up dropping it on the ground due to how badly her hands were shaking. It shattered rendering the potion inside useless. With a curse, she struggled to her feet, ignoring the pain, and reequipped her daggers. With the unfamiliar blond hunter helping them out, they were able to finish off the snake in another couple of minutes.

Ruby took a few wobbling steps towards Gladio and the blond he was talking to but suddenly her world tilted and she hit the ground. Her vision swam as her head continued to spin and she let out a groan. Just before she lost consciousness, she saw two worried faces looking down at her and felt Gladio scooping her up into his arms.

"Shit, she's poisoned." Gladio knew he didn't have any antidotes or remedy's on hand. "Prompto, do you have anything?"

Prompto pulled out a vial. "Just a basic potion. It won't help with the poison but she's pretty beat up. Who is she anyway?" he asked as Gladio took the vial and broke it over the woman in his arms.

Gladio stood up and started running with her towards the camp, Prompto following right behind. "She's a hunter who helps out Cor. Her name is Ruby."

"I'm glad to hear that he made it back. I ran into him after his run in with the Cerberus. He was in such bad shape that I was worried he was going to lose his 'Immortal' title. Figured I'd come say hello to you since I was nearby. Glad I did." he eyes were on Gladio as they made their way to the small camp. With the care that the other was holding her and looking at her, Prompto knew there was more to this woman. Now was not the time to ask though.

"I don't think the chocobo can carry me and her." Gladio said once they reached the safety of the campsite. "You're small enough. You think you could hold her so we can get back to the hunter camp?"

"Yeah, definitely!" Prompto quickly mounted one of the chocobo and then carefully took Ruby when Gladio passed her over.

Once Gladio had grabbed Ruby's bag and mounted the other chocobo, both took off running as fast as possible back towards the main hunter camp. They had barely made it into camp before Gladio was sliding off his mount and pulling Ruby from Prompto's arms. He cradled her gently as he hurried over to the medical tent and lay her down on one of the cots. As he looked down at her, his stomach dropped. She was so pale and sweat drenched that he was beginning to fear they took too long getting back. The hunter in charge of the medical care quickly gave her an antidote and an elixir.

"She's spent too long under this condition. There is a chance that there will be some side effects.” The medic put her supplies away and turned towards the boys with a frown. “The only thing that we can do now is wait to see if she wakes up."

Gladio shot the woman a glare. "You mean when she wakes up."

"Y-yes, of course." she then bowed her head in apology before going to busy herself with something else.

Gladio let out a curse as he sat down on the edge of the cot, one of his large hands closing over one of her much smaller ones. "Dammit. This should not have happened." He ripped the bag off his back and tossed it onto an empty bed. He roughly raked his hands through his hair making it stand up in all directions.

"Dude, everything will be fine! She already looks so much better!" Prompto said with a smile, trying his best to stay cheerful for his friends sake. "So why don't you tell me about your girlfriend while we wait for her to wake up?" at the look Gladio gave him, he grinned. "Ah ha, thought so!"

Before Gladio could respond, Cor entered the medical tent and hurried over to Ruby's side. Seeing him, Prompto snapped to attention. "Marshal."

Cor's eyes looked over the unconscious woman on the bed, his hand reaching out to caress her cheek. He let out a curse and a frustrated sigh. "How many times have I told her to make sure she always has at least one remedy on hand at all times? Little fool."

"Er, should we leave?" Prompto asked hesitantly. He looked between Cor, Gladio, and Ruby trying to figure out what was going on with them. With how the Marshal was acting towards her, brushing his hands over her face and hair, he was beginning to wonder if they were a pair. With how Gladio had reacted when he called Ruby his girlfriend, he'd have sworn the two of them were the ones together. He was so confused not to mention a bit surprised at seeing the Marshal act this way. He knew the man had a soft spot, but not quite like this.

Cor turned to look at him then, seeing him for the first time. "No, it's fine." he stood up and moved away from Ruby. "Please alert me once she wakes up." He said to Gladio then left the medical tent.

"Uh, have I missed something? That was really...awkward."

Gladio rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, it’s...something. Nothing for you to worry about though, so try not to stick your nose into things like usual."

"Hey! I'm just a curious guy by nature." He crossed his arms over his chest in mock anger, then they dropped to his sides. "I really hope that she pulls through. Whatever it is going on, I can tell that you really like her."

"Prompto" Gladio warned.

"All I'm saying is that it's pretty obvious. I've seen you flirt with a lot of women, but there's something about the way you're looking at this one..." he yet out a yelp and jumped back as Gladio lunged at him.

"Scram!" the larger man growled and sent the blond fleeing. He looked to Ruby to see if she'd awoken from the noise, but her eyes remained shut. Her breathing had evened out more and color was returning to his face, so he let out a soft sigh of relief. He sat back down on the bed, took her hand again, and waited.

Throughout the time that Ruby was unconscious, Gladio, Prompto, Dave, and even Cor took turns checking up on her. It was three days later before she finally shifted on the bed with a moan. Gladio put his book aside and was beside her in an instant.

"Hey, welcome back." he said with a grin when her eyes cracked open. "How do you feel?"

Ruby tried to sit up and fell back against the pillow with a groan when pain shot through her body. "Like I was crushed by a giant snake."

Gladio chuckled. "You were. You were also poisoned pretty badly. We didn't think that you'd make it." His fingers wound through hers and he squeezed her hand. 

She snorted, "I'm pretty stubborn. Besides, I've got too much to do to go dying now." this time when she sat up she did it more slowly. She still winced from the pain in her ribs, but it wasn't anything she couldn't handle. "I believe I also still owe you dessert." 

Their mouths were crushed together in a passionate kiss when Prompto stumbled into the tent with a tray of food and drink.

"Gyah!" he immediately turned around, face scarlet, and stepped back outside of the tent.

Gladio and Ruby pulled away from each other laughing. "It's fine, come in." Gladio called.

Prompto slowly came back into the tent, eyes slowly opening as he did so, his face still red. "I...brought...food." he couldn't bring himself to look Ruby in the eyes. "And water." he set the tray down on a side table within reach of the bed.

"Thank you." Ruby then held out her hand. "I'm Ruby."

He turned and took her hand, "I'm Prompto." he gave it a quick shake, then finally looked at her. "I'm glad that you are okay. Gladio has been crying his eyes out over you while you were asleep. He’s such a softy."

"I did no such thing you little shit!" Gladio grabbed the pillow from the bed and hit him with it. "I knew she was going to wake up. I was just staying here to keep an eye on her!"

The blond danced backwards out of range, a big grin on his face.

"You were that worried about me?" Ruby asked with a small tilt of her head. 

Gladio's cheeks flushed. "A bit."

A flash of light caught their attention and both hunters turned to see Prompto with his camera. "I got it! Wow, look at that blush!"

Gladio grabbed the pillow again with a growl and threw it at Prompto as he fled the tent.

Ruby was laughing hard enough that it hurt, but she couldn't stop herself. "I really like your friend. He's cute."

"Ugh, don't let him hear you say that or I will never hear the end of it."

"I'm going to ask him for a copy of that photo."

"No, he's going to delete that from his camera."

"Then I'll carry it around in my pocket to remember this moment." she continued as if he hadn't said anything.

"No!"

"And it will help me remember the other times I can make you turn red like that."

"...You're pretty evil. I think you may be a daemon in disguise."

"What is this talk of daemons?" Gladio and Ruby looked to see Cor enter the tent. His eyes were filled with relief at seeing Ruby awake. "Welcome back."

Gladio got up from the bed. "I'll leave you two alone." he shot Ruby a wink before leaving.

Cor sat down in the chair beside the bed, his eyes moving over Ruby for any signs of distress. He caught her wincing as she swung her legs over the side of the bed so she could sit up. "You were pretty badly injured when you were brought here, on top of being poisoned. The potions did most of the work, but it will be a few days more before your ribs are mended." His voice dropped in volume a bit, "Why didn't you have a remedy or antidote with you?"

"Ugh, I knew that you were going to ask me that. Did you really think that after the last time you yelled at me about it that I wouldn't have one? I did have one but was unable to use it. I was shaking so bad after being crushed that I dropped it. Can't use a potion when it's seeped into the ground." Ruby crossed her arms over her chest. "Besides, I wasn't expecting to run into a damn Midgardsormr! I was just trying to get the eggs so I could make better food for everyone so you could heal up faster."

"Now you are the one in need of healing the most. I only required food and rest. There was no need for you to go out of your way for me, Ruby."

She shook her head and stood up from the bed, wobbling a bit on her feet, eyes adverted from Cor. "I didn't do it just for you. I was also doing reconnaissance. We have an updated map. It should be in my bag, I can get it right now for you." she moved towards the tent opening but Cor grabbed her arm to stop her.

"Ruby, you almost died." Cor spoke softly. 

"I know. I'm a hunter, it comes with the job." Her words were unwavering, but when she turned and met Cor's gaze, her eyes began to water. "Dammit." he pulled her into his arms and held her as she began to cry softly. "I'm not afraid to die."

"I am." Ruby lifted her head from Cor's chest, eyes opened wide in surprise. "There is nothing wrong with admitting being afraid to die. I just cannot die right now, not when I have to help keep people safe while waiting for Prince Noctis to return. I need you to think about your actions more and stop being so reckless. This job will be harder if you are not around to help me fight." he leaned down and placed a kiss on her forehead. "Now, go ahead and go like you want to. Gladio is waiting for you not so patiently outside the tent."

"You know about us then?"

Cor chuckled, "I had to order him to go eat in order to get him to leave your side. He also may have told me that you were his now and that I was not to touch you again."

Ruby's face burned, "He did?" She wasn’t sure if she was embarrassed or angry. 

“I believe his words were something along the lines of ‘she’s my woman now and I’ll protect her myself so hands off’.”

She pulled away from Cor and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She fixed her clothes and ran her fingers through her short hair before leaving the tent. Sure enough, Gladio was standing outside a few feet away, back to them and hands in his pockets. She walked up behind him and whacked him in the back of the head.

"Ow, that was that for?" He asked as he rubbed the back of his head. 

"Idiot." Ruby said simply and headed off to check on her chocobo.

"I hope you know by now that she's a handful." Cor spoke as he approached Gladio. "And reckless and stubborn. I expect you to treat her well, Gladiolus. I am quite fond of her and if you cause her distress then you will face my anger. Is that understood?"

Ice ran down his spine at those words. "Yes, Sir." Gladio had automatically snapped to attention at the Marshals serious tone of voice. "I will treat her like the jewel she is named for."

"No, not a jewel. You treat her as your equal because that is what she is." With that Cor walked off.

Gladio let out a long sigh and relaxed. He thought the Marshal was going to yell at him for the way that he’d been acting. He had even challenged the man to a fight at one point. He put his face in his hand for a moment and shook his head at his own foolishness. When Prompto sidled up to him and just smiled, he rolled his eyes.

“You look like someone just kicked your puppy. Did you get into trouble?”

“Of course not. I haven’t done anything to get into trouble for.”

“Uh, I was there when you’d said you’d fight the Marshal if he tried to get between you and Ruby, remember? I even took pictures in case he killed you.”

“You’re a great friend, Prompto.”

“Yeah, I know!” the blond said with a grin, missing the sarcasm, or choosing to ignore it. “Now where did Ruby run off to? She probably shouldn’t be doing much right now with her ribs still healing.” He looked around the camp until he spotted her over by the chocobo. “Aha! I’m going to go say hi. Bye!” 

Gladio just watched as his friend ran off to talk with Ruby. While he also wanted to spend more time with her now, he had work to do that he’d been putting off. He really had spent most of his time by Ruby’s side while she’d been unconscious. He had even backed out of going on a hunt that he’d promised Dave he’d help with. He felt guilty about that now, so searched out the older hunter to apologize. 

Dave was always easy to find as he tended to stay in the same areas in the camp. He never went too far outside of their established safe zone either. Gladio found the man outside of camp talking with a group of men with a wagon. It was filled with various supplies and food items.

“Gladio, good timing. These men are travelling from Lestallum and over to Hammerhead to deliver these supplies to the outpost there. They were hoping to get some protection for the journey. Would you be up to doing a quick escort mission? I’m sure Cor has you doing something but if you have the time, we’d mighty appreciate it.”

“Yeah, no problem. I haven’t checked in with Cid or Cindy in awhile so it’s a good time to go. I’m sure Prompto will jump at the chance to go just for the excuse to see Cindy.”

“I can’t believe that boy is still hung up on her.” Dave said with a shake of his head. “Anyway, they hope to make it there before night falls. You’d want to leave soon if you’re going.”

“Just let me grab some things and I’ll be ready to go.” Gladio said to the two men who nodded in acknowledgement.

He went back inside the camp and searched out Prompto. Just like he knew he would, Prompto immediately said that he would go. He filled his small back pack with some snacks and water for the road then went to wait out by the wagon.

It took longer to find Ruby. She was not over by the chocobos where she had been earlier, but hers was missing. After asking around, Monica told him that she had taken her chocobo to the river to give it a bath. The river wasn’t too far away and he made it there in five minutes by foot. When he walked down to the water’s edge, he stopped to admire the view in front of him.

Ruby was in the water up to her waist wearing nothing but her underwear. Her chocobo was splashing around her excitedly causing her to laugh as she splashed it back. The sight made him smile until she doubled forward clutching her side. She slowly straightened up again a moment later, but he could see the frustration on her face from where he watched.

“Hey beautiful, I’m going on a job for a bit. Want to come give me a proper goodbye?”

Ruby turned to look at him and smirked. “You really want me to? Okay, suit yourself.”

She ran out of the water, jumped up into the air, and landed against his chest. Her arms and legs immediately wrapped around him and he was soaked. As she devoured his mouth in a kiss, Gladio stumbled backwards from the assault and fell onto the ground. She only paused the kiss for a moment before she renewed her attack. This time her mouth moved lower to nibble at his neck while her arms slid down between their bodies to fondle him through his pants. 

Gladio groaned as she slid slowly down his body, leaving a trail of burning kisses in her wake. By the time her mouth reached the waistband of his pants, he was already hard as a rock. She quickly unbuttoned his pants and tugged them down a bit before her mouth latched onto the dip in his hip. She sucked a deep purple bruise into it while she took his cock into her hand and began stroking him. She squeezed with just the right amount of pressure but her strokes were too slow. It was sweet torture and he could not make up his mind if he wanted it to end or go on forever.

“You just, fuck! You just gonna tease me or are you going to-” a long groan cut him off as Ruby closed her mouth around the head of his cock and slowly slid down the length of him. “Fucking fuck!”

She chuckled around the length in her mouth which made him shudder. Continuing her slow pace, her lips moved up and down his shaft, her tongue swirling over the head when she went up, then sucked harder on the way down. Her other hand that wasn’t around the base of his shaft was fondling his balls, squeezing them in time with her sucking and licking. His hips started rocking slightly but he was making sure not to thrust too hard so as not to hurt her.

Ruby lifted her head so she could watch the expressions cross Gladios face as she pleasured him. Her hands never let up on working him, gradually picking up the pace, all while keeping their gazes locked. With a particular stroke and twist of her wrist, his eyes were falling close and his head thumped back against the grass.

“R-Ruby, getting close.” His fingers dug into the ground. “Ju-just like that. Fuck yes.” His body lifted up off the ground when the stroking sped up and focused more around the tip of his cock. 

She waited for their eyes to meet again before she smiled. “Come for me, Gladiolus.”

Not expecting to hear his name said like that, his eyes opened wide as he gave a shout, finally finding his release. He continued to groan and rock his hips as spurt after spurt of come shot out of his cock and onto his chest and stomach. Ruby continued to stroke him until he started shaking from the over stimulation and waved her off. She tucked him back into his pants since he was unable to move for the moment. Then with a wicked look, she licked her way up his body, cleaning up his seed and making a show of swallowing. 

He pushed himself up onto his elbows and looked down at her with lust filled eyes. She was still smiling like the cat who ate the canary. “That was amazing.” He sat up all the way and pulled her up his body for a kiss. “Not what I was expecting when I asked for a proper goodbye, but I sure as hell am not complaining. Are you going to welcome me back like that too?”

Ruby laughed as she pulled away and stood in front of him, a hand on her cocked hip. “You’ll just have to wait and see, won’t you?” she stripped out of her bra and underwear before going back into the river.

Gladio got to his feet quickly and started taking off his vest only to hear a familiar voice in the distance. He grumbled and pulled it back into place. Prompto was yelling and waving at him from the road.

“Looks like it’s time to go. We should be back tomorrow morning depending on how long Prompto tries to stay with Cindy, or if there are any attacks along the way. The road is usually safe, but who knows at this point.”

“Alright, I’ll see you tomorrow then.” When he just stood there watching her bathe, she laughed and waved him off. “Go on then or they’ll come get you.”  
Prompto was waiting with the two men and the cart up on the road. The blond was giving him a knowing look but he refused to say anything. There was no need to state the obvious after all and he didn’t want to encourage his friends teasing.


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A trip to Hammerhead, Ignis arrives, Cor and Ruby fight.

Thankfully the trip to Hammerhead was uneventful. They passed the time by discussing the daemon activity in the area and the possibility of building up more reinforced compounds for protection. After the attack on Lestallum and the damage just one red giant had done to it, safety was starting to become even more of a concern to the civilians. With the nights growing longer, it wouldn’t be long before the daemons became even more active and aggressive than they were already.

Cindy was very happy for the arrival of the goods and to see two of her friends. To Gladio and Promptos surprise and happiness, Ignis was visiting her as well. The three of them met up and caught up over dinner at the Crows Nest. It wasn’t long at all before Prompto brought up Ruby.

“You should meet her, Ignis! I bet you would really like her. She’s not afraid to put Gladio in his place, she kicks ass, and she even knows her way around food like you do. Maybe you could swap recipes or something?” Prompto hummed in delight as he stuffed his face with French fries. It had been awhile since he’d had them and he’d been missing them.

“Hm, she does sound like an interesting woman. I think I shall accompany you back to the hunters camp. It would be good to catch up with the Marshal as well if he is there. I have some news that may be of interest to him.” Ignis adjusted his glasses and leaned back in his chair. “There has been talk of a large disturbance in the Cape Caem area. Thankfully it is not a highly populated area aside from tourists, however…”

“Iris is still down there.” Gladio clenched his fists on the table. So far Iris had not reported anything out of sorts down that way, so he’d been thinking she would be safe. Of course the daemons would make their way down that direction at some point. “I will go down and check it out as soon as I can. We should go back first thing tomorrow morning so we can work on gathering intel.” He just hoped that whatever it was wasn’t something on the level of the Cerberus that Cor had run into.

When Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto returned back to the hunter camp, they expected a warm greeting since it had been awhile for all of them to be together. Instead, they returned to find the hunters gathered around outside of the camp watching something. The sound of shouting and metal on metal could be heard before the cause of it came into view.

"What the hell's going on?" Gladio asked with wide eyes.

Monica turned to face the trio and gave them a stressed smile. "I'm glad that you are back. Ignis, it's been awhile. I hope you are well?"

"I have been well thank you." Ignis replied before nodding towards the group. "I am most curious as to what has caused this?"

"Dude, why are Ruby and Cor fighting? Isn't she still injured?!" Prompto nearly yelled.

Cor stood in the center of the group that had surrounded them, his katana held out in front of him. Ruby stood in front of him with her daggers drawn and she looked absolutely furious. She attacked him fast then would pull back and circle around before lunging at him again. No matter how fast she struck or where, Cor would simply deflect her attacks. As the group stood there watching, Ruby would only continue to become angrier. She was already panting hard from the battle but Cor wasn't the least bit out of breath.

Gladio sighed and rubbed his temple. "Let me guess, he hasn't attacked her once yet, right? I figured as much." he added when Monica nodded. "No wonder she is so angry. He won't even spar properly with her. I've been on that end before, it's not fun."

"No, not quite. They are not sparring." Monica said, her eyes focused on the pair in the center of the ring. "Ruby is actually trying to injure him, to prove that she is fit enough to go on hunts. The Marshal already told her she is to stay and rest until he tells her otherwise. That did not go over well with her, as you can see. I just don't understand why he is letting her go on like this. She is only going to injure herself more."

"I assume that the Marshal is trying to teach her something. It is not like him to do things without reason." Ignis turned his face in the direction of the fight though he could not see what was going on. "Her rhythm sounds off to me."

"Yeah, and her footwork is a mess. She's favoring her injured side too and it's slowing her reactions down." Gladio made his way through the group watching until he stood in the front.

"Bastard!" Ruby growled out before darting forward again, blades up.

This time Cor dropped his sword and lunged forward, catching both Ruby's wrists in his hands and twisting them until she dropped her daggers. With a cry of pain, she dropped to her knees as he held her wrists tightly.

"Enough. I do not have time to waste indulging in your childish tantrum." his voice was firm and cold, though there was no anger in the words. "I have already given you an order, Ruby. If you do not wish to follow it, you are free to leave. I have no use for someone who is not willing to put their effort into protecting the people. Stop being so stubborn and selfish." When she continued to struggle against his grip, he turned to look at Gladio. "Restrain her and put her some place where she cannot hurt herself."

With a nod, Gladio moved forward. Once Cor let her go, Ruby lunged forward only to be caught in strong arms from behind. "Ruby, you need to calm down. Please, I don't want to hurt you."

Ruby struggled against his arms for a moment before she went still, then limp in his arms. Her breathing was still fast and hard and he could feel her shaking. Her hand gripped one of his arms and gave it a squeeze, but it barely had any strength in it. He didn't know if she was trying to pry his arm off her or if it was something else. He slowly removed his arms from around her before sliding one around her waist to keep her up on her feet. She was unsteady as they walked back into the camp and towards the medical tent. Once she was sitting on a bed, he handed her a glass of water that was sitting on a side table.

"So, are you going to tell me what that was about?"

Ruby drank the water until it was gone, then set the glass to the side. "Cor is being a stubborn asshole." Gladio couldn't stop the snort of laughter at the words and tone of voice she said it in. She smirked, "You've known him long enough to know what he can be like. He thinks that he can order me to stay here and not go on any hunts. Unfortunately for him, I am not a Crownsguard anymore and I no longer have to follow his orders."

His eyes went wide, "Wait, what? You were a Crownsguard? When? I don't remember ever seeing you there and I've trained a lot of people."

"I thought I told you already that I used to be a Crownsguard? Well, you would not have seen me, let alone trained me. I was there before you were and probably left right about when you took your oath."

"So you're older than me? How old are you?"

"Gladio, don't you know that it's quite rude to ask a woman her age?" The smooth voice belonging to Ignis spoke up behind them.

"Yeah, even I knew that!" Prompto followed behind him and stood nearby.

Ruby chuckled behind her hand, her eyes looking over the man she had not met yet. "Well, I don't really mind, but I'm not going to say anyway. You can guess."

Gladio looked to Ignis and then back at Ruby. "I guess it doesn't really matter. I was just curious."

Ignis moved farther into the tent and held out his hand, "We have not been introduced. I am Ignis and it is a pleasure to meet you."

Ruby took his hand and gave it a shake. "I'm Ruby. I've heard a lot about you from Gladio, so it's nice to finally meet you. I'm sorry that you had to see me like that. It's rather embarrassing."

Ignis shook his head. "Don't you worry about that. From what I heard, you seemed to have a pretty good reason for your actions. Though I am curious about something myself. Monica said that you had been fighting with the Marshal for almost a full hour. If that is correct, then you must have quite a bit of strength and stamina. You are probably an amazing hunter."

Ruby felt her cheeks burn a bit. This one certainly knew how to flatter. "I didn't realize it had been that long. Besides, it could hardly be called a fight when Cor wouldn't even take me seriously. I was basically like an annoying fly to him."

"Not true," Gladio shook his head, "he was on full guard with you. His sword stayed up and he was in his fighting stance. If he wasn't taking you seriously, he probably wouldn't even have had his sword equipped. He may not have been attacking, but he was not looking down on you, Ruby." he saw her wince and knew that that had been going through her mind. "If you were in the Crownsguard, then you've known Cor for years. You know what he's like and how he fights."

"Yeah, that's why it was so infuriating. I know what he's like and how he can fight. Yet he wouldn't even retaliate, so I couldn't show him that I'm not weak and am capable of fighting." Ruby stood up from the bed and rubbed her side for a moment. She bit her lip to hold in the hiss and tried to play off the pain she still felt. 

Gladio looked at the other two men, unsure of what else to say. Ruby was not in the mood to listen and she was more stubborn than Cor ever was. Gladio was even more curious about her relationship with Cor and how the two got along when she was still serving in the Crownsguard. He also wondered why she was no longer there but had a feeling that it was a sensitive subject.

"So, uh, how come you left the Crownsguard?" Of course Prompto would be the one to bring it up. He was too curious by nature.

"I was recruited by the Kingsglaive." Ruby said with a smile. "It was a hard choice joining them, but Titus was quite insistent. He convinced me to try out with them for a week and then make up my mind after that. I admit that I enjoyed the challenge, but honestly the teleporting is what won me over. I really miss that."

"Oooh, is that why you flash red sometimes?"

She nodded. "Yeah, but with the king gone...so is his magic and the ability to teleport. The light happens sometimes when I fight still, but I've not been able to teleport for over a year now."

"You left the Glaive before the fall." Ignis stated. "May I ask why?"

Her eyes opened in surprise for a moment. "I had heard how well informed you are, but I admit that I didn't think you'd know about me." Ruby's eyes moved over Ignis again and she tilted her head. "That is true. I left awhile before everything fell apart. I wanted to help people more directly and I couldn't do that while being a part of the Crownsguard or the Kingsglaive. So, I headed out on my own and became a hunter again. I think it suits me more anyway."

"So you were a hunter, met up with Dave, then went and jointed the Crownsguard at one point?" Gladio asked and started counting on his fingers, his eyes widening a bit when he realized how much older she was than him. He'd thought she was younger than him.

Seeing the gears turning in his head, Ruby moved over to stand directly in front of him. "You know, we actually did see each other at one point. I believe it was when you showed up at one of the Glaives training sessions and you demanded to spar with Nyx."

Gladio wracked his brain trying to remember seeing her before but could not. He could, however, clearly remember to what day Ruby was referring to. "So you saw me get my ass kicked, huh?"

Prompto was giggling into his hands. "Dude, I would have loved to have seen that!"

"Now that you mention it, I think I may have been there that day." Ignis tapped his chin in thought. "Yes, I was picking up a report from Captain Drautos while he was supervising the sparring.”

"It's quite alright if no one remembers me. I was not anyone of importance so I promise that I'm not offended. We know each other now though, so I would very much like to continue getting to know you both better." Ruby looked between Ignis and Prompto with a smile. "I hope that we can be friends."

"Oh definitely!" Prompto said cheerfully. "We need each other more now than ever with how things are!"

"Yes, I couldn't agree more."

Ruby's stomach took that moment to make itself loudly known. She blushed as the three men chuckled.

"I believe it is close to lunch time, so why don't I prepare a meal that will get you your energy back?" Ignis said with a soft smile. "I heard that you were already recovering from injury and now you were just sparring with the Marshal for an hour. I'm sure you could use a good meal to get you back up to speed. You could also consider it a way of saying that I am glad that we have met."

Ruby grinned with burning cheeks. "Are you always this charming, Ignis?"

"Carefully Iggy, she's already taken!" Prompto laughed and shot Gladio a look.

"I am only doing what is polite." Ignis' cheeks actually turned a little pink. "If a friend is in need, then it is only natural to want to help them out. I do the same for you two, and would for anyone else who needs it."

"Well, I'm flattered either way. Why don't I bring you to the kitchen?" Ruby went to stand beside Ignis and when he nodded in confirmation, looped one of her arms through his. This left him flustered and blushing again but he allowed himself to be led out of the tent.

"Don't you even say it." Gladio warned once he saw the look on the blonds face.

"Iggy’s gonna steal your girl."

"She's not mine to steal, and I'm not worried about Ignis." Gladio left the medical tent with Prompto following right beside him. While he may have called her his when he was talking with Cor, it was just bluster. "She's in love with Cor."

"Uh, are you sure about that? The two of you are basically glued together all the time. I haven't seen her much with Cor for awhile now, aside from mission debriefings."

Gladio looked across the camp to where the kitchen tent was set up. He could see Ruby and Ignis going over the available supplies and pulling out cookware. He could tell from her body language, and laughter, that she was delighting in flirting with Ignis and trying to make the man more flustered. Gladio was surprised at how easily she could do it. Then again, knowing how she could be, he actually wasn't. 

"Just keep your nose out of it, Prompto. It doesn't involve you." Gladio growled out, his eyes still on Ruby. "She can do what she wants and we have an arrangement. That's all there is."

"Sure dude, but you sure are looking green." the blond walked away from his friend and headed to join Ruby and Ignis.

Gladio stood there for a moment before he realized what Prompto had implied. "I am not jealous." he muttered under his breath. He shot a glare over to where the other man had gone. Prompto caught his look, and with a grin, wrapped an arm around Ruby's shoulders and hugged her. Gladio cursed and left to check in with Cor. He still needed to give him the update.

When Gladio found the Marshal, the man was sitting in a chair in the recon tent, elbows resting on his knees and his head in his hands rubbing his temples. He still seemed tense after the fight with Ruby, but Gladio was not sure if that was the cause of it. 

"Hey Marshal, is now a good time?"

Cor looked up and waved Gladio in, then stood up to lean on the map table. "I trust you were able to deliver the merchants to Hammerhead safely." 

"Yeah, no problems at all with that. Met Ignis there and he came back with me to help out."

"Good." Cor was silent for a minute before he let out a small sigh. "Is she alright?"

"She's very pissed off, but other than that she is fine. She's tougher than you give her credit for."

Cor crossed his arms over his chest. "I never called her weak. I know that she is tough and is an excellent fighter. You know that I won't allow injured to go out on missions. They can become a liability to not only themselves, but to others as well. With all of the new daemon that are showing up, every new one stronger than the last, I can't risk sending out someone who is not at their best. I also..." he looked down at the map to avoid Gladio's eyes, something that surprised the other.

"Are you ashamed for caring about Ruby?" Gladio asked boldly. "It's pretty obvious to those of us who know you that you have a soft spot for her. It's also just as obvious that she's in love with you."

"I know she is." Cor met Gladio's eyes then. "I know the two of you have been close since you have been here and I have been hoping that she'll turn her affections towards you."

"Is that the real reason you called me out here?" It is something that had been on his mind for awhile now.

"No, I called you because I truly needed your assistance. I admit that I hoped that the two of you would get on well, but that would have only been a bonus. I've talked to her about us before and I thought that she understood. She said that she did." he rubbed a hand over his face. 

"I know you said to leave it before, but I need to know. Why are you trying to get her to stop being in love with you? Why won't you let yourself love her?" Gladio crossed his arms over his chest. "I know the world is shit right now, but I'd think that would be more of a reason to cherish what you have while you can. We lose loved ones too quickly now." the last words were said with the image of his father in mind.

"Tell me, Gladio, do you really want me to reciprocate her feelings?" Cor looked at him hard then, "You wear your heart on your sleeve and have been following her around like a lovesick puppy."

Gladio felt his cheeks warm. "No, I don't, honestly.” He sighed “I just want her to be happy. I want both of you to be happy, even if it means Ruby is with someone who isn't me. So if you care for her, if you love her, I just don't see why you'd deny yourself the love of a great woman."

It was then that they heard their names being called. "Gladio! Time for lunch! Get your ass out here before it's all gone." Ruby shouted and banged some pots together. "Everyone else, come and get it!"

The hunters and Crownsguard that were in the camp all lined up to get their share of food. Ignis had made a delicious stew with a side salad and grilled vegetables. He said that it was important that everyone got the proper nutrients so that they would remain healthy. It would also help them heal faster from any injuries that they may have received. Ignis and Ruby served everyone as they came up. Cor made it a point to go to Ignis line since Ruby was very much ignoring him. She greeted Gladio with a big smile and a wink though which had the man himself grinning as well. Once everyone was served their own meals, Ruby jointed Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto at one of the tables.

"I must say, this came out delicious." Ignis said after taking a bite of the stew. "You really know your way around spices. I must find out which shop carries them so I can procure some myself."

"I find most of it on my own in the wild while on hunts. I do have a map I made of where I found things though and I'd be happy to lend it to you to copy." Ruby took a bite of it herself and her eyes closed in delight. "Mm, the meat just falls apart in my mouth! You've got the hands of a god, Ignis."

"Alright, alright, enough with the flirting." Gladio said with a roll of his eyes. Poor Ignis was all flustered again; it had to be a new record. "You're going to make me lose my appetite."

"Good, more for me!" Prompto said as he stuffed his face full of salad. "Mm, so good!"

The three men caught up on what they’d been missing since the last time they had traveled together. Ruby asked questions about things as they went along and quickly became closer with them. She was surprised to learn that Ignis was indeed blind considering how well he navigated around. He still acted and moved like he saw everything clearly. He had even managed to cook perfectly well.

Prompto apparently was traveling around and taking photos of new daemon that appeared and spreading them to hunter stations so they could stay informed. Iris, Gladio’s sister Ruby learned, would take those photos Prompto brought her and start compiling as much information about them as she could. 

Gladio was the one doing most of the field work in finding the daemon again and taking note of their territories, habits, and anything else of note. He mentioned that the three of them often checked in with each other via phone, but not so often in person anymore. He admitted to them that he missed traveling around as a group and so the three of them decided to stick together for awhile.

“You are also welcome any time, Ruby.” Ignis said and pushed up his glasses. “We would never think to exclude you.”

“No worry about that Iggy.” Gladio said with a grin that was audible. “She’s not leaving my side.”

Ruby raised a brow at his words as Prompto giggled behind his hands. Ignis just tilted his head as his non-seeing eyes looked between Gladio and Ruby.

“If the two of you are partners now it only makes sense that you travel together. I’m sure that at this point you are pretty close and work well together out in the field.”

“Not just out in the field.” Prompto snickered and then ducked out of the way as Gladio swatted at the back of his head.

“I’ll be going back out in a couple hours to do my rounds again. You are more than welcome to come with me if you wish. We are pretty good at taking care of anything that gets too close, so I can’t promise anything exciting will happen.” Ruby set aside her plate once she’d finished eating and stood up to stretch. She caught Gladio eyeing her up and he gave her a wink when they caught each other’s eyes. “Then again, I may need to save Gladio again, so more help could be welcome. He is such a trouble maker.” Before Gladio could respond to that, she smirked and hurried off.

“I’ve saved her ass more often.” He muttered under his breath as he watched her leave, eyes focusing on said ass. 

“You are quite fond of her.” Ignis stated more than asked. “I can hear it in your voice whenever you talk to her or are talking about her.”

Gladio set his empty plate aside and leaned back in his chair with a sigh. “You’re still pretty damn observant for someone who can’t see.”

“It’s only my eyes that cannot see. My other senses have increased to compensate, but even then it is pretty obvious even to me.” His voice dropped a bit, “Is it serious between you two?”

Gladio looked across the camp where Ruby had gone and was now sitting and talking with Monica and some other Crownsguard. Cor was off to the side a bit too, keeping his distance but even from here Gladio could see that he was looking at Ruby often. She was still ignoring him for the time being.

“No, it’s not serious. We haven’t known each other long enough for anything like that.”

“Oh come on big guy, she spends more time with you than anyone else!” Prompto didn’t need to specify who he meant when he said ‘anyone else’. “Besides, it’s pretty obvious that she’s interested and probably feels the same as you. You two seem like a pretty perfect match to me!”

The smaller male’s words did make Gladio feel a bit better. He really hoped that Ruby liked him as more than a way to relieve stress or even more than a hunting partner. He was usually pretty forward and would normally ask these kinds of questions outright, but he just couldn’t bring himself to ask Ruby directly about her feelings for him.

Despite it only being around one in the afternoon, it was starting to get dark quickly. The big lanterns were being lit inside the old light posts that had long since stopped working, but they provided enough light to alert others far away that they were there. If someone was traveling, it was always good to know if a safe haven was nearby. The smaller lanterns around the parameter of the camp were lit next but the large fire in the center would not be lit until later. The chocobo that had been let out to graze were called back inside the safety of the wall and put back in their pens unless they were needed.

A few hunters left to go do their rounds or run various errands. Monica had called Ruby over to the intel tent and handed her a heavy sack. Ruby accepted it with raised brows as she knew it contained various letters and information that needed to be delivered to other hunter bases.

“Everything has been updated and I would like for you to make the rounds this time. I know that you are itching to get out and do something more than basic patrols.” The older woman said with a smile.

“I have no problem doing this, but I would be surprised if the Marshal would allow me to do this.”

Monica winced mentally at the use of Cor’s title. Coming from Ruby, it meant that she was still very angry with him. She felt bad for her superior, but he’d done it to himself. “Don’t you worry about him; I have already taken care of things. Why don’t you go with Gladio, Prompto, and Ignis? I know typically it’s something you would do alone, but it would give you a chance to see how you all worked together.”

Ruby shouldered the heavy bag and grinned. “It certainly beats staying around here. I’d much rather be out in the field where I can be more useful.” She rubbed her side where her injured ribs were. They did not hurt too much right now but if she moved too fast or the wrong way then sharp pain still shot through her side. It was nothing that she couldn’t handle. It was more of a nuisance pain than anything at this point. It was why she was so mad at Cor about being forbidden to go on hunts right now. “Do you want me to bring you back anything?”

“The usual is fine for right now, thank you. Oh, there is one thing,” Monica added as Ruby turned to walk away. “Go ahead and take your time coming back. It’s been awhile since you visited the others, right? I’m sure that you would love to catch up with them for a bit.”

“Hm, that is true, but I’ll play it by ear. If things are in bad shape at the other camps, I may stay and help them out as much as I can before I come back. It does not look like I’ll be particularly needed here anytime soon.”

Monica frowned. “You know that’s not true, Ruby. You are one that we can always rely on when we need something done. Don’t let what happened between you and the Marshal earlier affect you. He really is only doing this because he cares about you.”

Ruby shook her head and turned away again, “Sure, just like any of his other good little soldiers.” She scowled as she left the tent. The words sounded harsh, but she knew Monica understood what she had meant. The older woman was like a sister to her now and she confided in her. She was the only one who knew fully what was going on with her and Cor, and now Gladio. “See you when I return.” She called over her shoulder. She hated parting on bad words.

“Be safe!” 

Ruby headed to her own tent to grab her small travel pack before heading over to her chocobo to load it up. Once everything was all set and ready to go, she went and searched out her boys. She smiled as she thought about spending time with the three of them. Things were hard and she was hoping that being with them would make things a bit easier.

“I’m glad you are all together, it will make this much faster.” Ruby found all three of them together outside of the main entrance looking out into the darkness. “Monica gave me intel and missives to deliver so a few of the other camps. Would you boys like to come along with me?”

“Sure, where are we heading?” 

“The three main bases to the west of here.”

“It certainly sounds like a worthwhile mission to accept.” Ignis said. “I have no objections to going with you.”

“I haven’t been out that way in quite awhile. I’m curious as to what’s been going on out that way. Maybe we could hit Old Lestallum on the way back.” Gladio nodded his acceptance.

Prompto looked excited. “I’ve been wanting to go out that way for awhile now. It’s been months since I was last there. Maybe we could hike up Mt. Ravatogh so I could get some new shots?”

Ruby shook her head sadly. “Unfortunately, with how fast it turns dark now, we would not make it to the top in time. Before I’d have no problem camping there over night, but now…it’s just too dangerous. That place was hard enough to navigate during the day. At night it’s just deadly. Though now that there are four of us, it could be worth it to try.” She added when Prompto’s shoulders had slumped. She smiled when he perked up again. “No promises though!”

“Understood!”


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ruby and the boys go to do inspections of the other Hunter bases. A new type of daemon appears.

When all four of them were ready to go, they mounted their chocobo's and took off into the darkness. Travel was much slower now than it used to be due to the limited visibility, but at least the daemon you needed to worry about the most tended to announce their presence pretty loudly. They stayed together as they made their way towards the first base, each of them vigilant in looking for any dangers, or anyone in need of help, along the way. They reached the first base with only a few minor battles along the way. Considering the group was much higher level fighters than most of the demons in the area, the battles were quick and there were no injuries.

The sky ahead of them was brighter than the darkness letting them know that they were almost to the first base on their stop. A few minutes later and they were pulling to a stop in front of the large metal doors that kept the daemons out of the base. The two hunters on door duty waved and smiled when they saw the friendly faces come out of the darkness and quickly opened one of the doors to let them in. It shut behind them with a loud clang once they were inside.

"What news do you bring?" an older woman with long grey hair in a braid and a sword strapped to her belt asked as she hurried over to them. She wore a simple uniform that some of the hunters had taken to wearing so other people would know who they were. A pin on her shoulder marked her as the captain of this particular base. "I hope your travels here were without incident."

"Captain Marsha, I'm glad to see that you are well." Ruby slid off her chocobo and pulled the pack off of the back to dig around inside. "Nothing out of the ordinary on the way here." she found the correct bundle inside and pass it over to the captain. "There is a lot going on though so these will interest you. It looks like there is a lengthy one from the Marshal in here as well as some updated maps and some letters for you and the others here."

Marsha took the offered bundle and frowned at the size of the letter from Cor. "I know they say no news is good news, and sometimes I think that is right. It is never good when the Marshal sends something like this. I will make sure to read it right away, thank you."

"How have things been going here? Anything that we need to be concerned about?" It was Ignis who asked as the men joined them.

A loud howl interrupted anything that the captain was going to say as a very large dog bounded over towards them. Before Ruby could give a warning, the dog leapt up and attacked his chosen target. Prompto was caught unprepared as the large dog hit him in the chest and knocked him to the ground. It then immediately began licking his face as it sat on him, tail wagging with excitement at making a new friend.

"Gah, I give! I give!" Prompto wailed as he tried to push the massive dog off of him but it would not budge much to the others amusements. "Please help, I can't breathe!"

Marsha gave a sharp whistle and the dog immediately got off of Prompto and went to sit by his masters side. "I'm sorry about King here. He's usually very well behaved but when he sees someone new, he can't help but to say hello."

Prompto got up off the ground and started brushing himself off. His clothes were covered in huge dirty prints. He sighed and gave up on brushing them off. "I thought I was going to die." he then went over and started to pet the dog, unable to resist. He'd always loved dogs and sadly you did not see too many of them around anymore. "He's such a good boy though. Yes he is!" the praise earned him a happy bark and another face washing, though he remained sitting. 

"I do hope you thoroughly wash yourself later." Ignis said with a chuckle. "You will start to smell quite foul otherwise."

"Maybe the smell will keep the daemons away?" Gladio joked.

"Hey, I don't smell!" Prompto sniffed himself, made a face, then blushed. "...maybe I will bathe later."

As the group laughed, the captain watched them with a small smile. "I am happy to see that you are still able to smile and laugh like this. It is becoming rarer to see and hear at times like this. I try to encourage it as much as possible here, but sometimes it is a failed effort."

"It is never a failed effort." Ruby said still smiling herself. "Even if we are unable to laugh out loud, it does lift our hearts when we see other people caring about us. I'm sure the others here feel the same way." Looking around the camp at the other hunters, some of them were smiling and chuckling and the air felt light here. Not depressing at all. "Don't change."

Marsha gave a little chuckle. "Noted. Now if you will excuse me I do need to go and read through all of this. Please make yourselves at home here for as long as you'd like. If you want to know more about what is going on around here, you can speak with my son Jace. He is normally in the intel room or eating."

"I believe that I will go and look for Jace. I would very much like to know the situation here. While it does appear to be calm for the time being, I'd rather not assume as much."

"I'll go with you, Ignis." Gladio and Ignis left together to search out the captain’s son.

"Prompto, will you help me? I dropped off the letters for the hunters here, but I want to go around to make sure none of them have anything they want to send out." Ruby pulled an empty bag from the sack and held it out to him.

"Sure, it will be faster if there are two of us."

About an hour later the four of them met up again where they had left their chocobo. Prompto now held a partially filled bag with outgoing letters, while Gladio and Ignis had learned that there was nothing abnormal or of note going on in this area. Deciding that there was no need to stay around any longer, they mounted up again and rode out towards their next destination. The second camp was in the same state as the first. Nothing unusual going on and everyone was trying to stay in high spirits. After dropping off the information and picking up any outgoing mail, they set off again quickly.

It was now closer to 5 p.m and had reached full darkness long ago. The chocobo each had their own lights as well as each of the members had their own too. Still, it was hard to see where they were going. The terrain here was becoming more difficult to traverse, even when sticking to the roads as much as possible. Deciding that they should make camp, they headed for the closest haven. Ruby tended to the chocobo while the men set up the camp. Ignis began to prepare something for them to eat.

"Does it seem unnaturally quiet around here to you?" Prompto asked quietly himself, afraid to disturb the silence. "I don't even hear the usual sounds."

"We are closer to Ravatogh now. Daemon activity is typically higher around there. Or at least it used to be." Ruby frowned as she finished feeding the chocobo. "Now that I think about it, it's usually much louder around here because of the increased population."

"We best stay on our guards then." Ignis brought over some plates. "Dinner is ready."

Gladio took a bite of the steaming meat and made a pleased sound. "Thank you." after taking a long drink, he looked around. "Typically when something like this happens when going on hunts, it's usually due to something bigger coming along and chasing things away."

"Are you saying that a bigger daemon has moved in and claimed this as his territory?" Prompto asked, his eyes wide and fork held halfway to his mouth.

"I'd say that chances are high."

"We should probably get to the last base quickly then. I'm getting worried about them now. We have not received any messages from them saying that anything is wrong." Ruby accepted her plate when she went to sit down with the others. "I know we set up camp, but maybe we should head out after we eat instead of waiting until morning?"

"I'm not so sure that would be the best idea." Ignis frowned, "I do understand your urgency though."

"Yeah, it would be better for us to wait until morning so we have better visibility. If this is a bigger daemon, it could be something new. We don't want to be at more than a disadvantage than we already are. The darkness only hurts us, but it makes them stronger." Gladio kept his eyes scanning the darkness around them while they ate.

"I could go scout ahead."

"Absolutely not." Gladio and Ignis said instantly.

Ruby scowled. "You know how good I am at being stealthy, Gladio. Even if there is something out there, I'd never give it a chance to see me, let alone attack me. I'm also very fast and don't have any concerns about not being able to get away should it spot me."

Gladio glared back at her. "No."

"It is much too dangerous right now for you to go on your own." Ignis tried to sooth both Ruby and Gladio, sensing tensions rising. "Perhaps I could go with you and we could check out this area a bit more. The darkness is nothing new to me."

"I vote we all wait until morning." Prompto spoke up but immediately shrank back at the glare he received from Ruby. "I don't want either of you going out right now. It's a really bad idea for us to split up! What if something happens?"

"It won't."

"You don't know that, Ruby. Stop being so damn cocky and reckless!" Gladio snapped out. "You trying to get yourself killed?"

Ruby shot up from her chair so that she was looking down at Gladio. "I'm trying to keep people alive!" her hands were clenched at her sides and if looks could kill, no phoenix down would have saved Gladio from her death glare.

The group was silent then as Gladio and Ruby continued to glare at each other. Prompto was holding his breath, eyes darting between the two, and Ignis let out a long sigh.

"Please calm down you two. Fighting each other will accomplish nothing." Ignis stood and cleared their dishes, then began cleaning up. "Going out there into possible danger while you are so angry is also a bad idea. Let us wait a bit longer and then make a decision."

Ruby turned her back on Gladio and stormed away, sliding down the side of the rock base and out of sight.

"Hey, don't leave the camp!" Gladio shouted and made to go after her.

"I know that, asshole!" Ruby shouted back. "I just don't want to see you right now, so leave me alone." she sat down on the ground with her back against the stone rock of the haven. She could feel a very slight warmth from the glowing glyphs and it felt rather nice and calming.

"Gladio, help me with this, would you?" Ignis called the other male over before he could do something stupid. Gladio grumbled but went to help.

Prompto slid down the side of the rock to join Ruby on the ground. He didn't say anything but after sitting down beside her he bumped her with his shoulder. When she looked at him, he gave her a soft smile and a look of concern but said nothing. 

"I'm fine." Ruby let out a long sigh and let her head fall to the side to rest against his shoulder. "Gladio is such a stubborn pain in the ass."

He snorted, "I know the big guy is pretty bull headed, but I think you may actually have him beat there."

"I'm not stubborn, I'm just firm with my decisions and don't like people telling me what I can and cannot do."

"I think that is a definition of being stubborn." Prompto laughed when Ruby playfully punched his arm. "So, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, what's up?" Ruby lifted her head so she could look at him, the glow from the glyphs providing just enough light to see his face.

"I was just wondering...what do you really think about Gladio?" his voice was quiet so he would not be overheard by the two mean above them. "I mean, do you like him as a friend or maybe-"

"Are you trying to ask me about my romantic interests Prompto?" she smiled when his cheeks turned pink. "It's fine, I don't mind." Ruby looked up at the sky, happy that at least the stars were still visible in this abnormal darkness. "Gladiolus is a stubborn asshole...but he is also sweet and puts everyone above himself. He is funny, strong, supportive and sexy as hell. He doesn't hold back when we spar and treats me as an equal. Yeah, I like him. A lot." Ruby was already talking quietly but her voice became even softer. "I may be starting to fall in love with him." When she saw Prompto's eyes go wide and his mouth open, she quickly slapped her hands over them to keep him quiet. "Don't you dare say a word of this to him or anyone else, got it?"

Prompto nodded vigorously even with her hands still on his mouth. "Yup, no prob!" he said when she finally lowered them. "Ah man, I'm so excited for you two. You really are a perfect pair." he laughed a bit, "You should see his face whenever he sees you with Cor. I actually probably have a picture if you want to see."

"Shhh!" Ruby hushed him quickly and her body went rigid. Her eyes were locked onto the trees in front of them and she was holding her breath. "Don't move. There's something there."

Prompto ever so slowly turned his head so he could see where she was looking. He couldn't see anything but he could hear something. There was heavy and raspy breathing and the sound of branches snapping. Ruby made a motion with her hands and started crawling along the ground staying as close to the haven as possible. Prompto followed behind her as quietly as he could. As long as they stayed against it like this, they should be safe. 

They had just crawled around the side of the haven only to stop short. Gladio was there crouched down with his sword out, eyes fixed in the direction of the daemon. He put a finger to his lips and nodded his head for them to follow him, which they did. Ignis was waiting for them at the back side of the haven with his daggers drawn.

"What the hell is it?" Prompto asked when they stopped.

"I haven't been able to get a clear look at it, but whatever it is, it is huge. Can't you feel the tremors in the ground?" Gladio had barely finished speaking when the ground began to shake a bit. Not severely but it was very noticeable. They were spread out enough to let them know that the shaking was caused by footsteps. "I think it's moving away, so just stay down and keep quiet."

Ruby was staring up at Gladio from her spot on the ground. He had been right around the corner from them and was there too quickly to have just jumped down. He had probably followed them down and was listening to their conversation. She had no idea if he had heard anything she had said, but she supposed she would find out later if he had. As for right now, it was not the time for distractions.

Howls and groans started sounding and something that did not care about being quiet was quickly moving through the brush. Those noises were very familiar and were the sounds of the regular daemon that were known to be in the area. From the sounds of it, and by the direction that they were heading, they were following after the other one. Whether they were together or the smaller ones were hunting the bigger one it was unknown. They would have to examine the area in the morning when they could see. When it was deemed safe to move, the four of them climbed back up to the top of the haven. 

"Whatever that was, it's gone for now." 

"It's heading towards the base." Ruby said as she noticed the path the daemons had taken. "The bases are not protected like these havens are. If that huge daemon decides to attack them, it is going to be a catastrophe."

"There is no need to start panicking. We don't even know what that big one was. It may not even attack them at all. It could even change course and go elsewhere. Some of them are timid and avoid people when possible. Just because it's big doesn't change that." 

"If we go on chocobo, we can out run it. We can circle around and get to the base before it does. If it changes course then we can alert the captain at the base about it." Ruby was already going over to the chocobo and climbing onto up onto it.

Gladio immediately rushed over and grabbed the reins before she could take off. "Don't go rushing off on your own, dammit!" Knowing there would be no convincing her to stay at this point he decided to just go with her. He let go of the reins so he could hop up onto his own chocobo. The other two did as well. "This is going to be dangerous; I hope that you are prepared for it."

"This is nothing new, Gladio." she nudged her chocobo forward and the group took off. "Stop being an ass and worry about being a hunter."

"You like my ass." he mumbled under his breath as he came up behind her. "Just pay attention alright? Neither Ignis or I saw what that damn thing was and it was huge. That means that it's either very good at being stealthy or in worse case it can turn invisible."

"Let us pray that it cannot become invisible. That is the last thing we need right now." Ignis was on Ruby's other side. "No other daemon's have shown a change. If this one has not evolved, then we are probably looking at a new species. I know that you are in a hurry to get to the base, as are we all, but I must insist that you exercise some caution."

"Yeah, I don't think any of us want to be the ones to tell the Marshal that you went and got yourself killed." Gladio gave her a pointed look.

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I'm so happy that I have such friends who think so little of me."

"Aw, come on Ruby, you know that's not what we mean." Prompto pushed his way between Gladio and Ruby. "We're just all worried. Not just about you either. Just stay with us. We're a team, right?"

"Yeah, we are."

As they continued to race through the darkness while keeping aware of their surroundings, they stopped talking unless it was necessary. They did not want to give away their positions if they could avoid it. They could faintly hear the sounds of the daemon's that had been following the big one and they made sure to stay far enough away from them. They had not changed their course at all and the hunter base was coming up quickly. Wanting to beat the daemon, the foursome sprinted ahead as fast as their mounts could carry them.

The base was locked up tight when they reached it and there were barely any fires going to provide light. When the guards saw them coming, they quickly opened the door and shooed them in before quickly locking it behind them. Inside the camp was just as dark and it was almost completely silent. The hunters were gathered around all armed and ready for combat, their eyes to the walls and skies around them as they listened for approaching foes.

"Did you see anything? Is the daemon coming?" Captain Gregory asked as approached them. He was a younger man, about Ruby's age, but it was obvious by his scars and the look in his eyes that he had a lot of experience. The hunters around him were following him without questions which also meant he had proven himself capable of the position.

"Yes and no. There was something but we couldn't see anything. Heard it though and it sounds huge. There is a small pack of daemon following after it. What do you know about it?" Gladio asked when the captain cursed.

"Not much unfortunately." The captain answered. "It only seems to come out at night and has not been violent as of yet, but it tends to bring other daemon with it who are. Not one of us has managed to see it yet. The only reason why we know we aren't going insane is the fact that we shot it with a flair and it howled in pain. The damn thing is invisible."

Ruby looked around the camp until she spotted a ladder. She quickly climbed it so she could get on top of the wall to look out into the darkness. She could see trees moving and hear the howls from the other daemons as they approached.

"They will be here in a few minutes!" she yelled down from the wall but did not come back down. "Have you tried throwing something on the big one to try and see it? Like cloth or paint?"

Gregory stared up at her for a moment and grinned. "I like the way you think! Men, look around the camp for anything that we can use! Make it fast!" he turned to Gladio while still grinning. "I hope you boys are going to help us out with this and not just stand around and look pretty?"

"Er, right." Gladio said before he and the other two men ran off to help look for things that could be used. 

Gregory climbed the ladder to join Ruby and the other hunter who had already been up there. "I don't think I caught your name?"

"I'm Ruby." She said and held out a hand. "I assume that you are the one that took over for Michael?"

A green eye winked at her. "Yup, that's me. He's left me some pretty big shoes for me to fill. I admit that it hasn't been easy. Now that we're dealing with this mystery daemon, I'm glad I took on the job."

"It's not like it took a lot to convince you to." The other hunter joked. "Sir, enemy spotted!"

The first of the daemon broke through the tree line and ran up the main road towards the front gate. With no other brush or trees to hide the large daemon it should have been easy to spot. However the daemon was still nowhere to be seen and yet the ground trembled with its approach. The road started cracking in places due to its weight and it appeared to stop further away from them, probably watching to see how they would react.

"Sir, we found paints and tarps!" a hunter yelled as some of them began climbing up the ladder with some paint.

"Good, keep some paint down there. The big one seems to be staying away but it is still not visible. Looks like we have a pack of pissed off coerl to deal with tonight." Gregory slid down the ladder and over to the rest of the hunters who were waiting for order. "It's going to be dangerous, but I want some of you to go out one of the side doors and try to circle around where the big one is. We need to get some paint on the thing at least. Another group of you need to go out and keep those coerl distracted."

"Leave that to us." Gladio said and nodded at the others. "We should be able to take them down quickly unless some of them are evolved."

"Only one way to find out. I'll cover you from up on the wall." 

The different groups split up; one going out to try and mark the invisible daemon, Gladio with Ignis and Prompto to fight off the coerl, while Ruby, Gregory, and some of the other hunters provided cover from above. Gregory pulled a bow off his back and notched an arrow, the other hunters following suit.

"You don't use guns?" Ruby asked as she took an offered bow and notched an arrow herself. "It's been awhile since I've used one of these." she aimed over the side and fired one off, narrowly missing one of the coerl.

"We save the heavy ammo for tougher daemon. Coerl are not impressive once you learn their tricks. They also don't have any armor to worry about." Gregory was a very skilled archer and managed to take down two coerl with a single arrow each. "If we could see the big one, I'd have ordered some heavy artillery be used. Until we know what we are facing, it would be a waste."

Shouts were heard from below as Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto engaged in the coerl that were clawing at the main gate. Ruby watched as the second group of hunters moved around to the side before they disappeared into the darkness.

"They are going to need a lot more light down there." 

"No problem." with a grin that was becoming rather charming, Gregory lit one of his arrows and fired it down below. It hit an unlit torch below and burst into flame. He then did it a few more times until the road was well lit. More daemon of other types were slowly making their way towards the base, but nothing to be too concerned about. "I still can't see the damn thing."

Ruby strained her eyes against the darkness, trying to use what little light the torches provided to try and at least pin point where the huge daemon was. It had not moved from where it had stopped, at least going by the lack of tremors. She could see the group of hunters nearby keeping low to the ground as they readied the paint and tarps to try and mark the daemon somehow. A few of the hunters lined up and aimed bows and arrows before fireing up and hopefully over the demon, ropes attached to the backs of the arrows which pulled a tarp behind it. The arrows landed in the ground on the opposite side and the tarp was caught on something. There was a rumble as the demon shifted and the tarp shifted with it. They had a target.

The hunters let loose glass bottles of paint which shattered upon impact with the daemon and coating it in color. As it started to become more visible they all realized that this daemon was even bigger than they anticipated. From the looks of things, the tarp was caught on the back side of the daemon on what appeared to be spikes running down its body. Another tarp was shot up and over and caught on another part of the body, closer to the middle of the back. More paint thrown as regular arrows started to fly, finally attacking the daemon directly.

The daemon let out a loud and angry howl, so loud that everyone flinched and had to cover their ears. Many let out cries of pain as they dropped to their knees, blood flowing from their ears. A burst of light lit up the area before a loud boom sounded as lightning shot out from the daemon in all directions. The smaller daemon on the ground as well as all of the hunters were thrown back in all directions from the blast. Gladio, Ignis, Prompto and a few other hunters had been far enough away that they were only staggered. No one could move as they were paralyzed momentarily from the lightning. Thankfully the other daemon had been effected as well and some had even been killed from the blast.

When everyone could see again after the light dimmed, the daemon was in full view, no longer invisible. The daemon looked to be some sort of hybrid between a Jabberwock and a Bandersnatch but much larger than either of the two. Multiple sets of horns covered its head, a large mouth filled with rows of sharp fangs, spikes ran down the full length of its body, and at the end of its tail was a deadly scythe. It's claws were massive and were made more deadly by the fact that the daemon had for arms along with its hind legs. Black ooze dripped from its eyes, mouth, and nose and there was an unsettling black mist swirling around it. This daemon was corrupted.

"Open fire! Open fire!" Gregory shouted once the beast had stopped howling and they could fully see the daemon. "Don't hold back!"

Ruby tossed her bow to the ground and pulled out her daggers. She jumped up onto the top of the wall and stopped when her arm was grabbed. She gave Gregory a look before pulling her arm away and jumping over the side of the wall. As she fell, she used her Glaive training to turn in the air and drive her blades deep into the stone wall. Her decent to the ground was slowed and she landed safely at the bottom. As soon as her feet hit the ground, she was running forward to join Gladio and the others.

"You should have stayed up there!" Gladio shouted when he saw Ruby approach.

"And miss all the fun?" She grinned as she drove her blades into one of the daemons legs. "Would you have stayed?"

"Hell no!"

The fight was long and hard but slowly they were managing to whittle down the daemons health. Thankfully it did not seem to be able to do the big lightning attack again, at least for now, but that did not make it weak. With fast movements for something of its size, the daemon spun around and took out multiple hunters with its tail scythe while clamping its fangs around others. Ruby switched to using her sword and with a combo attack with Gladio, they managed to finally cleave the tail scythe from the daemon. Black blood spurted out and coated both of them but there was no time to be grossed out or worried.

The daemon started thrashing around more violently the more damage it took sensing that its end was near. It reared back on its hind legs and let out a growl. The spikes along it's body shot out in all directions, impaling any hunters that were in the way while quite a few ended up driving into the wall of the base. Gladio and Ruby had been under it and so had avoided any of the spikes. They used the opening to perform another combo attack and drove their blades deep into the soft spot of the daemons underside from neck to tail.

Another howl of pain and the monster dropped to its side before finally falling still. Slowly it began to disintegrate and black ash floated away on the wind.

"What. The hell. Was that?" Prompto asked between gasps for breath. 

"Trouble is what it was. We seem to have stumbled upon something quite serious. The Marshal will want to know about this as soon as possible." Ignis brushed himself off and made a face at the sticky black goo clinging to him. "How fowl. I am in great need of a bath."

"You should see Gladio and Ruby. They are covered head to foot in it." Prompto made a face as well, then realized the two were nowhere to be seen. "Uh, speaking of those two, you wouldn't happen to know where they went?"

"They were taking care of the last of the coerl a moment ago." one of the hunters nearby said. "Maybe they went back into the base since it's open now that everything is dead." 

The rest of the coerl had been dispatched and any hunters that were still alive were helping those who were injured and carrying them back into the base. The area outside of the base was a disaster but thankfully nothing that couldn't be repaired without too much trouble.

"Do you think you can point me in the direction of the showers?" Ignis asked and was then led off by the hunter and back into the base, Prompto following behind.

The building the bathrooms and showers were in was located in the middle of the base. The bathrooms were on the first floor while the showers were located up on the second floor. Ignis thanked the hunter and then went with Prompto up to the second floor. Clothes covered in black goop were scattered around the floor and laughter could be heard coming from one of the stalls.

"I should have known." Prompto muttered and stayed by the door.

"I do hope the two of you are behaving yourselves." Ignis entered the room and went to a locker to start undressing himself. "I am sure it is only a matter of time before others come in to bathe as well."

The laughter stopped for a moment before low voices spoke, then louder "We're just washing, promise!" Ruby said loud enough to be heard before laughing again. "Just a heads up. This black blood or whatever it is does not come off easily. You'll need to scrub hard and use really hot water with lots of soap."

Gladio grumbled, "It does not want to come out of my hair. No you aren't shaving me!" he said a moment later and Ruby was laughing again.

"Thank the gods it only got on my clothes." Ignis had finished undressing and stood with a towel around his waist. He moved towards an empty stall, not near the one Gladio and Ruby were occupying, and started the water. "Prompto, I suggest that if you want one to hurry." the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs echoed in the room. "Or you'll miss out on a hot shower."

Prompto bolted into the room and undressed in record time. He ignored grabbing a towel and just went right into the shower, yelping when the water came out cold to start. "Yikes! Cold, cold, cold, aaaah hot. That's better."

By the time everyone finished getting clean and had gathered again in the main area, it was past 9 p.m. They were all tired, exhausted, and hungry. Ignis had gone to help get food ready and was pleased to find people already had been working on it. They got food out to everyone at a reasonable speed which made everyone happy. Hunters who had not been fighting due to staying in the base in case it was breached, took turns up on the wall keeping an eye out for enemies. Thankfully everything stayed quiet and they were able to start relaxing some. Gladio started retelling the fight with the new daemon in great detail and Ruby quickly joined in, even recreating some of the moves they did. The hunters laughed as they watched and listened to them, finding amusement in things that had been deadly just a short time before. Such was the life of a hunter.

"I think that I am going to turn in for the night. We're going to want to leave early tomorrow morning to get back to our base while there is still light." Ignis stood from the chair he had been sitting in and stretched.

"Yeah, I'm gonna head to bed too. I'm beat." Prompto said after a large yawn.

"I'm going to head back to the camp. We left everything there and I'd rather not leave it behind." Ruby said then held up a hand before anyone said anything. "Gladio will be going with me. We'll meet you to on the road nearby there in the morning."

Ignis observed them for a moment before giving a nod. "That does seem like the most efficient action at this time. The daemon activity has been low in this area due to that big one, so it should be mostly safe. Or as safe as it can be I suppose."

"Night Iggy, Prompto." Gladio said as he got up to stand with Ruby.

"Night, have fun!" Prompto replied with a grin and wink before following Ignis to the sleeping quarters.

Gladio and Ruby mounted their chocobo and made it back to the haven where they had set up came before the incident started. They encountered no daemon at all on their way back so made it there quickly with no issues. Once Ruby slid off of her chocobo, she began to stretch. She was stiff from sitting after fighting and had not really moved much from being so tired. She started doing her stretches now to loosen up and Gladio joined her with a chuckle.

"I guess I'm not the only one feeling all tight after that fight." He made a pleased noise when his back cracked. "How are you feeling?"

"Mm, pretty good actually. My ribs aren't even a little bit sore. I probably have new bruises though." Ruby turned her back to Gladio and held her arms behind her. He took the hint and helped her stretch by gently pressing her arms up. When that one was done, she turned around to face him and smiled up at him. "You really are an amazing fighter, Gladio. You're like a wild beast when you fight, all power and speed. Going right in for the weak points and attacking until your prey has been taken down."

He chuckled, "If I recall you were right there by my side the whole time. That makes you just as much as a beast as I am." he recalled the way she attacked quickly and without mercy with barely any wasted movements. The bright look in her eyes and the grin on her face while she fought made him lick his lips. He was tired but couldn't resist leaning down to capture her lips with his. "You up for one more fight?"

Ruby responded by grabbing a fist full of his shirt and pulling him towards the tent. "Luckily I know how to take this beast down quickly."


	5. Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The L bomb. Ruby meets Iris.

Gladio woke up in the early light of dawn to the feeling of fingers brushing through his hair. He cracked his eyes open to see Ruby watching him. When she saw him wake, she gave him a soft smile and a kiss.

"Morning."

"Morning beautiful." Gladio kissed her this time and pulled her tight against his body, nuzzling his face into her neck which made her laugh.

She gave a light tug on his hair to pull his head back enough so she could look at him. "I'm really glad that I didn't have to shave your hair off after all. I quite like it." she scratched her nails over his scalp and made him groan a bit. "We should probably get up and pack up before Ignis and Prompto come and get us."

"Don't want to." Gladio growled before dropping his head again and began to nibble on Ruby's neck. His mouth latched onto the mark he'd put there last night and made it deeper. She shivered and arched against him as she let out a needy sound. "You don't want to either." he groaned as her hands wrapped around his quickly hardening cock.

"You are insatiable." she panted against his mouth before she nipped at his lower lip. "We have to...get moving." even as she was protesting, her actions betrayed her. She moved one of her legs up to wrap around Gladios waist and then slowly sheathed herself on his cock making them both moan long and low.

Gladio placed his hands on her hips and rolled onto his back so that she was riding him. He could be quick if he needed to but he hated having to rush when there was no real need for it. He watched as Ruby let her head fall back and eyes close as she started rocking her hips against him. Every time she lifted her body up, he pulled her back down hard onto him, meeting her halfway with his own thrust. She squeezed him tight every time she was fully sheathed and let out beautiful moans as he stroked against her g-spot. One of his hands slid down from her hip and around so he could thumb at her clit to bring her to the edge faster. When she quickly reached her peak she pulled him over the edge with her. 

As their mouths found each other again, Gladio rolled them over so she was under him and he continued to thrust inside her gently. She still had a tight grip around his cock and the way she was trembling told him she was already close to another orgasm. This time he pounded into her harder and deeper causing himself to moan louder with how good it felt.

"Gladio, don't stop." Ruby moaned his name as her fingernails dug into his back and legs wound around his waist.

"Don't...plan to." his own breathing was just as hard and he could feel the sweat starting to slide down his skin. A moment more and he found his own release, pumping her full of his hot seed. "F-fuck, Ruby." his mouth attacked hers as she moaned his name again as she fell apart.

A few minutes later when they had finally caught their breaths again and were satisfied for the time being, Gladio rolled onto his side and lay Ruby down. He then sat up and stretched before reaching around behind him for the shirt he had been wearing and used it to wipe her off before doing himself. It would be hard to clean properly without running water, but they could clean up as soon as they got back to camp. Ruby got up and began dressing and raised an eyebrow at Gladio who was just sitting there grinning at her.

"What is that look for?"

"Just admiring my handiwork." His eyes moved over her to where the dark marks littered her skin. He got to his feet and moved over to give her a soft kiss. "I won't lie; I like seeing you with my marks."

Ruby rolled her eyes and swatted him away. "Yeah well you should see yourself." she smirked as she leaned down to pull on her boots. For every mark that Gladio had given her she had returned. Deep purple bruises, bite marks, and long scratches covered his skin along his chest, arms, back, and anywhere else she could reach.

He looked over the marks on his skin and his grin widened. "Yeah, and now everyone knows that I'm yours."

"Hm, are you now?" when Ruby straightened back out and brought a hand up to trail a finger across his jaw and down around to rub across his lower lip. "Are you sure you want to give me that power over you?"

"Yes." He said it with no hesitation, "I love you."

Ruby's eyes shot wide at the unexpected confession. At the look that came over his face, he apparently hadn't meant to voice that either. The look quickly left his face though and he pulled her tight into his arms.

"I love you, Ruby. I mean it." Gladio chuckled. "It happened kinda fast, but I heard it does sometimes. You...you don't have to say anything. I don't want to make you feel uncomfortable or pressure-"

His words were cut off as Ruby crushed her mouth to his in a passionate kiss. "You have horrible timing." 

Gladio frowned at her words before his head turned towards the tent flap. He heard it then; voices calling for them not too far off. 

"We better get moving or Ignis is going to read us the riot act." 

Ruby dashed out of the tent and quickly started packing things up. Gladio cursed before running out after her. This was not how he had planned to do this and now the moment was ruined. He just hoped that the ride back to the base wouldn't be awkward.

Ignis and Prompto were waiting for them on the road. As expected, Ignis greeted them with annoyance at having to wait for them. Prompto stared at them for a moment before his cheeks were blazing like a tomato. It was then that Gladio realized that since he only had his vest on that Ruby’s marks were on full display. The blond looked between them before looking away again. Gladio just grinned and Ruby shot him a wink.

“Let’s hurry on our way now that the two of you have finally decided to grace us with your presence.” Ignis started forward without waiting to see if the others were even following him. “I had hoped to have left an hour ago.” He gave Gladio a look when the other caught up to him.

“Yeah, sorry it was my fault. Mostly.”

“Of that I have no doubt.”

Ruby giggled as she rode behind them beside Prompto. “Sorry for making you both wait.”

“Uh yeah, no worries. We’re kinda used to it because of Noct sleeping in all the time.” Prompto looked at Ruby then and his eyes found the marks on her skin visible above her collar. He looked away again. “Just don’t make it a habit! Anyway, I’m surprised since Gladio is usually up with the sun.”

“We were.” Gladio chuckled. “We were just having a-”

“If you have time to talk then I suggest we move faster. I’d like to make it back to base and report to the Marshal before noon.” Ignis kicked his chocobo into a faster pace and everyone followed suit.

When they got back to the area of their base, Gladio and Ruby made a short detour to go get cleaned up in the small lake nearby. Ignis and Prompto rode ahead to get the news to the Marshal as quickly as possible. Gladio and Ruby made quick work at washing up, only touching each other enough to help wash each other’s backs. They were only fifteen minutes behind the other two but still received a look from Ignis for taking too long.

Cor was leaning over the table in the intel tent going over all of the information that he had been given from the other bases, as well as processing the information about the new daemon. Both he and Monica looked tired and stressed out like they had not slept at all in a few days. Apparently another new type of daemon had been spotted at another base but that one had manage to escape. A hunter had come from that base to deliver the news personally and Gladio was both happy and angry to see them.

“Iris, what the hell are you doing here?” He had approached her as soon as he’d seen his sister standing outside of the tent where Cor and Monica were talking. “You didn’t even call to tell me you were coming up this way.”

“Well it wasn’t exactly a planned trip! I was just doing my job and scouting around when I made a new friend. I kind of ended up going with her and that’s how I ended up at the other base and then here.” Iris crossed her arms over her chest. “I don’t need to tell you everything that I do. You certainly don’t tell me everything you do!” her eyes slid to Ruby and looked her up and down. She immediately noticed the matching marks on her and Gladio. “I see you have a new girlfriend. You haven’t said a peep to me about her.”

Ruby pushed past Gladio and held out her hand to Iris. “I’m Ruby, you must be Iris. It’s nice to finally meet you.” She gave a smile when the younger girl took her hand and shook it. “Gladio talks about you often.”

“Ugh, sorry about that. Really, he’s so overprotective of me it drives me crazy!”

“Yeah, from the sounds of things that’s what I assumed. He is pretty protective of everyone.” Ruby side-eyed Gladio as she spoke. “Even when he’s the one who needs protecting.”

Gladio stood there listening to the two most important women in his life joke about and make fun of him, uncaring that he was only two feet away. His arms were crossed over his chest and he frowned as he tapped his fingers on his arm while waiting for them to stop. He had almost interrupted them but seeing his sister look so happy and carefree while chatting with Ruby made him bite his tongue. He could take a little ribbing; he dished out enough of his own.

“So, how long have you two been together anyway?” Iris asked and looked at her brother.

“I don’t even really know myself.” Ruby admitted. It had been several months at this point when she and Gladio first made their deal of helping each other relieve stress, but she doesn’t know when exactly it became more than that.

“I’d say around four months or so. Maybe a bit longer but we’ve been so busy dealing with the daemon that it’s hard to keep track of time.” 

Gladio was only partially telling the truth. He remembered exactly when things changed between them, or at least when his feelings became serious. Had it really been half a year now? Half a year and he was already this in love with her. He was still surprised about that. Thinking on that made him remember that he had blurted out that he loved her before they had been interrupted back at the haven. Their eyes met and held for a long moment and he wondered if she was thinking about that moment right then as well.

Iris pouted. “That long and you really didn’t message me at all about her? That is so unusual of you. Usually you’re bragging about your girlfriends to anyone who will listen.” Her pout turned into a smile and she giggled a bit behind her hand. “You must really like her, Gladdy.”

Ruby bit her lip at the nickname. She’d have to tease him about that later, but for now their moment was about to be interrupted. 

“Things are beginning to escalate rather quickly. We should send out more patrols and widen our routes.” Cor spoke as he and Monica exited the intel tent. “You suggested setting up watch towers before. I think now would be the time to put those into motion. How fast do you think they can get started?”

“I’ll get a group together today and start going over our supply lists.”

Cor looked to the small group gathered outside of the tent, his eyes lingering on Ruby the longest before he gave them all a nod in greeting. “I heard about the attack from Ignis. I am glad to see that you all have made it back here safely. That would have gone very badly for us had the base fallen. Already people are fleeing their homes for the larger cities due to the increase in daemon activity and longer nights.” He sighed and wiped a hand over his face. He looked like he was ready to fall asleep on his feet. “Ignis, help Monica in determining the best locations for the towers.”

“It will be done.” Ignis gave a nod and went off with Monica.

Ruby moved forward and grabbed a firm hold of one of Cor’s arms. She glared up at him before tugging on his arm. With a frown, he allowed her to pull him across the camp to his tent. Once inside, she let him go then gave him a firm shove on his chest.

“You need to get some sleep. Now.”

“Ruby, I don’t have time to-”

“What did you tell me before about not getting enough rest? It will slow your reactions down, make you weak, and make you a liability. Your own words.” She put her hands on his chest and gave another push until he backed up to where his cot was. 

Cor let himself fall down so he was sitting on the worn mattress, then looked up at her and actually smiled a bit. “You do listen to me sometimes.”

“I listen to you all the time when it’s something reasonable.” Ruby said softly. “This is not a problem that is going to be fixed anytime soon. In fact, it’s going to get much, much worse. We are going to need you at your best Cor. Please don’t push yourself to breaking already.” She reached down and took one of his hands in hers and squeezed it. “I’d be lost without you.”

“No you wouldn’t.” Cor looked up at her with tired eyes and a soft smile. “You have Gladiolus there beside you now, don’t you? He’ll never leave you alone.”

Ruby felt her chest tighten at those words. She knew them to be true, but at the same time, they weren’t really. Once Noctis returned, Gladio would again return to his sword duty as the kings Shield. She would not stop him from doing so. She had no right to. So even if he would stay with her for now, it was only a matter of time before their little…whatever it was they had was put aside. It was hard not knowing exactly how long she had with him, but she was trying not to dwell on it.

“Get some sleep, Cor. You better not get up anytime soon.” Ruby pressed her lips to his forehead before pushing him to lay down. She then quickly turned away as she felt her eyes beginning to burn.

Cor had noticed the start of tears in her eyes and frowned. “Ruby?”

“Go to sleep.” She then left the tent before he could question her.

Ruby headed over to where their worn out chocobo were resting in their pens and made sure that they had been given the best greens they had for their hard work on getting them back quickly. The water was also filled and some fresh hay tossed into the pens for softer bedding. The chocobo eagerly piled up on it all almost instantly fell asleep. Doing her chores helped her clear her head and eyes of pending tears.

“You really love these birds, huh? I can tell just by looking at them how well cared for they are.” Iris moved to squat down next to the pile of chocobo and reached out to pet one. It cooed at her in its sleep which made her smile. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

“Sure.”

“Are you serious about my brother?” Iris slowly stood back up and turned to face the other woman. “He seems to be pretty serious about you. I know he hasn’t really told me much about you other than what I just heard a few minutes ago after you went off with Cor, but I can see it in his eyes. I think that he’s in love with you. He’s had a lot of flings, a lot, but I’ve never known him to be in love before.”

Ruby had gone stiff at the first words that Iris had spoken and even now she couldn’t form any herself. Iris must have seen the panicked look on her face because the younger woman put a hand on her arm and smiled.

“Please, don’t worry! I am not going to try and chase you off or anything! I’m actually pretty happy that he’s found someone. That is why I want to know how you feel about him.”

Ruby looked at Iris for a long moment as the thoughts swirled around inside her head and her heart pounded loudly in her chest. Her gaze shifted and she noticed Gladio walking towards them, his hand up in a wave. It was then that the words tumbled out.

“Yeah, I’m serious about him.” She said softly, but then louder “I’m in love with Gladio.” Her eyes were locked onto the man in question as she spoke.

Gladio froze in his tracks, hand still up in a wave, as Ruby’s words reached him. Suddenly he was moving forward again, as fast and precise as when he’s on the battlefield and wrapping his arms around Ruby in a tight hug.

“Did you just say that you love me?” he moved her away just enough so that he could look down into her eyes, a big grin on his face. “I heard that right?”

Neither of them heard the quiet giggle as Iris silently snuck away.

“Maybe.” Ruby looked away, too embarrassed to meet Gladio’s eyes. She then let out a startled shriek as he lifted her up off her feet and spun her around. “Gladio, put me down!”

“No! Not until you say it again.”

She pounded on his back with her fists but it only made him laugh. “Put me down you big oaf!”

“Say it.”

Ruby stopped struggling and went limp in his arms. Gladio stopped spinning her around and held her tightly to keep her from slipping down. He swore that he could feel her heart pounding in her chest against his shoulder where she was resting. It was as hard and wild as his own.

“I love you Gladiolus.” 

He nearly did drop her then but his hands were quick to catch her waist and he gently lowered her to her feet. His grin faded to a soft smile and he leaned down to press his forehead against hers for a moment. Once she was looking at him properly, he gave her a soft kiss. It was slow and gentle but said more than any passionate kiss would have.

“I love you too, Ruby.”

Inside his tent not far from where Gladio and Ruby were, Cor smiled.


	6. Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dino, Coctura, and baby Abby. Gladio has a plan but it doesn't go as expected.

It took two weeks before the first watch tower was finally starting to be built. It took another two for it to be completed. It had taken Monica and Ignis a lot of time to contact the other hunter bases and other contacts for sources for materials to build them. Then they needed to wait for workers to show up to start the actual construction. To make matters more difficult, it was now mostly dark by noon time which meant they had to rely on fire and spotlights to be able to see what they were doing. The extended darkness also meant an increase in daemon activity which in turn leads to more work for the hunters. 

The remaining Crownsguard that were around had all been sent to the major cities to help with protection since most of the civilians were flocking there from the smaller towns. Attacks were becoming much more common, not just on the road but on towns themselves. Only places with high walls were safe now. That meant the big city of Lestallum or the hunter bases. The civilians preferred not to go to the bases due to the high risk of attacks there and so the city was becoming very crowded. The Marshal made frequent trips there now to keep his Crownsguard organized and to make sure everything was running smoothly.

While Cor was mostly away from their main camp now, Monica was left in charge of everything. Gladio helped out with organizing the other hunters and planning hunts, Ignis helped Monica out with supplies and information, Prompto left with Iris and Arenea to scout around for more hunters or supplies, and Ruby stayed at the base camp to help out Gladio. Sometime she would run to Lestallum with Cor or would bring messages to him there, but otherwise she did not go off and do anything on her own or without Gladio. They were most efficient when working together. She was also the one who the chocobo trusted the most so she was in charge of them. They had acquired a few more from Wiz and they now had eight chocobo in total for use. Ruby promised him that she would take excellent care of them as well as bring him any eggs that were found out in the wild or if any of theirs happened to lay any. With the increase in daemon activity, the number of chocobo seen in the wild was starting to drop.

Ignis sat down in a chair beside the main fire with a long sigh, removing his glasses to wipe a hand over his face, then let his head fall back. "For such short daylight hours, today was a long and tiring day." he had been out checking the progress on the second watch tower that was just starting to go up. "Things would go much more quickly if we had more muscle to help move supplies."

"I have an idea for that." Ruby said with a grin.

Gladio groaned, "Here we go."

"If you have any suggestions I would love to hear them." Ignis put his glasses back on and turned to face where Ruby sat.

"What if we tamed some Dualhorns? They are not incredibly aggressive unless they are threatened and I really think if we got one or two of them that it would work. They are more timid when not in their herds."

"Well that is certainly not the type of suggestion I was expecting."

"Oh, you should hear some of her other ideas." Gladio chuckled with a shake of his head. "She also wants to tame Arba to use as mounts!"

"Hey, Wiz thinks that's a great idea! Cindy is even working on something for me to help with that."

"You're going to get yourself killed if you try it. I won't allow it." 

"Gladio, I do actually think she has a good idea." Ignis spoke up before the sparks between two stubborn hunters could start flying. "At least with the Dualhorns. I have heard of some people keeping them as livestock, so training them to use as heavy labor would not be so farfetched. Perhaps I can get a hold of Prompto and Iris and have them look into it for us."

"In the mean time, maybe you could just tie Gladio up and have him pull the carts for you?" Ruby joked and sent the hunter in question a wink.

"I think you just want an excuse to tie me up." he replied with raised brows.

"I don't think I'd need an excuse for that."

Ignis loudly cleared his throat, "If you two could talk about that kind of thing later, I would be grateful."

"Sorry Ignis." Ruby got up from where she had been seated and moved to stand behind Gladio. She leaned down and whispered something in his ear which made him grin. Gladio responded by reaching his arms up to grab her and pulled her down for a kiss. "I'll go and grab us some food."

"Thanks, babe." Gladio admired her form as she walked away. "So, do you really think that trying to domesticate Dualhorns is actually a good idea or were you just trying to humor her?"

"I truly think it is worth a shot. At the rate we are going it will take us months before we have a single route worth of watch towers up. Time is not on our side, unfortunately." Ignis turned his face towards the sky. "I do wish that Noctis would hurry and return to us so that we can end this situation before it worsens. It's been almost two years now."

The pair of them fell silent at the thought of their friend and future king. Gladio was worried about the prince not returning at all, but Ignis was forever hopeful about it. Gladio did not doubt Noctis' strength but he did not understand how the crystal worked or truly the whole prophesy or any of that stuff. He just wanted the evil to go away and for things to return back to how they were before. Not that they would truly be able to return to how things were before, not with how many lives have already been lost and the amount of pure destruction going on. 

Gladio had decided that he would try to keep his hope up as well. There were many people around him now that relied on him. He also hoped that his family would continue to grow even in the darkness. His eyes found Ruby over at the kitchen getting them food and a warm smile spread across his lips.

"Ignis, tomorrow I'm heading to Lestallum. I heard from Dino."

The other man smiled as well. "Ah, I see. So you are going to be taking Ruby with you as well then?"

"Yeah." 

"You two talking about me?" Ruby asked as she approached carrying some plates and a bowl. She passed Ignis the bowl of veggie stir fry and handed Gladio his plate of meat skewers. "Nothing bad I hope."

"Never. I was just saying to Ignis that it's about time we head to Lestallum to check in with Cor." Since that was also true, he wasn't exactly lying to her. "He'll want to know about the tower progress. I figured that you'd want to tag along with me."

She rolled her eyes as she sat down again with her her own plate of meat. "Of coarse I'll go. I'm the one who usually goes anyway, remember? I thought you were going to go to the other tower location with Ignis tomorrow though?"

"There are still some things that I need to finalize before I head out there, so he's available for the day." Ignis supplied easily.

"Okay, great. We can leave first thing in the morning then."

Despite the longer nights and higher daemon activity, Lestallum was still a bustling city, even more so now with the increased population living there. A perimeter wall was halfway finished being built in order to increase the safety for the people who lived there or sought safety there. There were no longer any vendors out on the street but all moved inside. One of the buildings that had been partially destroyed by the Red Giant attack had been remade into a multi level shopping center. It was there that Gladio needed to go to pick up his order from Dino.

"Hey, why don't you go on ahead to Cor and I'll meet you in a few minutes? I just have to make a quick stop on the way." 

"Sure, but don't take too long. I'm sure that Cor would like to speak to you as well." Ruby stood on tiptoe to give Gladio a kiss. "Food after?"

"Yeah, same place?"

"You got it!"

The couple then split up and went their own way. Gladio headed into the shopping center and to a shop set up on the second floor. A glass window showcased some of the items available like rings, necklaces, bracelets, and any other kind of accessory that you may want. A bell rang over his head as he entered and the man behind the counter looked up with a smile, a magnify spec over one of his eyes giving him an odd look.

"Hey, hey! I was hoping that you'd stop in soon, Gladiolus!" Dino took off the spec and set it to the side before eagerly pulling a cloth covered box out from behind the counter. "This is some of the best work that I have ever done. I'm almost sad to part with it, but I know that it's important." he unwrapped the box and pulled out a much smaller one and placed it on the counter. "Just let me know if you want a matching one. I still have enough of the material left that you brought me that I could do it."

Gladio picked up the box and ran his fingers over the smooth texture before slipping it into his pocket. "Thanks. What's the remainder that I owe you?"

Dino shook his head and waved a hand. "Nah, don't you worry none about that. You did all the leg work for the materials and I owe you. Consider it a gift!" The two of them shook hands with a smile.

"So, how are Coco and the little one doing?"

The bell to the shop rang again signaling new customers. Gladio turned his head to look only to have his legs slammed into a moment later. He looked down and laughed at the little girl wrapped around his legs. A woman with disheveled brown hair came in with her arms full of bags. Gladio quickly moved over to grab one, the little girl still wrapped around one of his legs, and set it on the counter.

"Coctura, I was just asking about you. You look like you've been busy." 

The woman he fondly referred to as Coco smiled. "Gladio, nice to see you again. Since you are here, I'm assuming that you’re picking it up? About damn time you know."

Gladio felt his cheeks heat. "It hasn't really been that long though. If anything, I'm worried that it's too fast." he leaned down and pulled the girl off his leg to lift her high up into the air.

"Gladdy, spin me around!" the girl squealed and kicked her feet as the larger man did so.

"Have you been a good girl, Abby?" he gave her a toss before pulling her down for a hug when she signaled for one.

"Yes! I help mommy shop! Daddy won't let me play with his pretty rocks." She pouted a she said it.

"I keep telling her she has to wait until she's older, but I don't know how much longer I can hold out with that cute face of hers." Dino grinned as he pulled his daughter from Gladio's arms and sat her on the countertop. "She's already pretty good at matching colors up." the pride in his voice was obvious.

Gladio looked at the little family he was happy to call his friends, his heart swelling with love. He hoped to have the same for himself someday, maybe sooner rather than later. He couldn't help but picture a similar situation with himself and Ruby. The thought brought him back to the present.

"I'd love to stay and talk more but I have to go and report to the Marshal."

"You better bring Ruby by to say hello before you two leave! Just send me a message if I should pick up a bottle of wine for us." Coctura said with a smile.

"Sure thing, Coco." 

After saying goodbye Gladio left the shop and then headed for the hotel where Cor had set up base in one of the suites there. The hotel was mainly used as apartments now due to all the refugees coming in. Talcott had apparently started acting as an aid for Cor, something that amused the Shield very much. When he got to the hotel and headed up to the office, he saw Talcott running down the hall with his arm full of papers.

"Oh, Gladio, Ruby is already in with Cor so go on in. They are waiting for you!" the boy barely stopped to say hello as he hurried on to wherever Cor was sending him.

Gladio knocked on the door before he went into the room. Cor was sitting behind his desk with papers spread out while Ruby sat on the desk and was pointing things out to him. When he got closer, he saw that they were maps and they were in the middle of placing pins where the scout towers were going up. Cor looked up at him when he entered but only gave a nod in greeting. 

"I just got him caught up on everything." Ruby slid off the desk and looked up at him when he walked over to her. "What took you so long?"

"Eh, got caught by Dino."

"Ah. I'm surprised you're not still there then." she said with a smirk. "Whenever I stop in he talks my ear off, mostly about Coco and Abby of course."

"I see you have Talcott running about. Between you and Dino, the kid must be building up a lot of stamina." 

Cor nodded. "He has also started training but he's not really cut out for fighting. I don't have the heart to stop him but at least he'll learn enough to put up a fight." he picked a large envelope up off his desk and passed it over to Gladio. "Here's the information you were looking for."

"Thanks." he tucked the envelope into one of his pockets. "So, you ready to go get some food?"

"Oh yes. I think there is a Garula steak with my name on it." Ruby turned to Cor with a smile. "I'll see you again before we head out."

Ruby headed out the door first and Gladio right behind her, but he stopped when Cor called out to him.

"Good luck." the man said with a smile before he reseated himself at his desk.

Gladio just grinned in return and left to quickly catch up with Ruby. He caught her hand as they walked and gave it a squeeze, big smile still on his face.

Ruby squeezed it back though looked up at him with a raised brow. "What has you in such a good mood? Did Cor give you something good?"

"I certainly hope so." he could see her looking up at him still, waiting for him to elaborate but he kept his lips sealed. Instead he leaned down and gave her a kiss. She huffed at him which made him laugh. "Hey, I think I can smell the steak from here." They were over by the weapon shop now and the smell of food cooking was filling the air.

"Mm, can't wait to sink my teeth into some thick juicy meat...that isn't you." Ruby winked at him.

Oh how he adored this woman.

After finishing lunch, the couple walked hand and hand out of the cities protection to head down to the overlook. The sun was just starting its early descent so most people were hurrying inside the city at this point. This left Gladio and Ruby alone at the outlook to enjoy the sunset together. She stood wrapped up in his arms with her cheek pressed into his chest while the sky slowly darkened. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and tightened his arms around her. His heart was pounding now and he wondered if she could hear it. She lifted her head to look up at him, sliding her hands up to rest on his chest, eyebrows knitting with worry. Apparently she could.

"Gladio, is everything okay?"

"I was just thinking that it's already been a year. It sure went by fast." he licked his lips, "I fell for ya pretty fast, huh?"

Ruby smiled, "I guess it was the same for me too. You were just too persistent for me to ignore." she doesn't even remember when she stopped loving Cor as a romantic interest and fell in love with Gladio. It was all a whirlwind to her even now. "You did annoy me a little at first, but now I can't imagine not having you beside me. Gladio...will you marry me?"

Gladio looked down with wide eyes as he felt a band slip around his left ring finger. He stared down at her with wide eyes and mouth moving wordlessly, but just for a second. "Are you shitting me?"

Ruby looked hurt. "No, I was being serious." her shoulders dropped and she started pull away.

He quickly wrapped his arms around her, "No, I'm not turning you down!" he couldn't help but laugh and give her a kiss. "It's just this." he pulled the small box out of his pocket and opened it. "I was getting ready to ask you to marry me! But look..." he held the box closer to her and held up his left hand next to it.

The band inside was black with gold inlay markings that resembled the eagle tattoo on Gladio's back. There was a red and an amber colored stone set into the surface in place of the eagle’s eyes. It was identical to the one Ruby had put on his finger.

"That bastard." She said as she stared at the matching rings. She then looked up at him and started smiling. "Does this mean you are going to say yes?"

"That is a fuck yes from me. How about you?" When Ruby held up her left hand and wiggled her fingers, Gladio took the ring out of the box and slid it onto her finger, then wound their fingers together. An odd warmth came from the rings when they touched.

"You can't run away from me now." Ruby reached up with her free hand and tugged Gladio's face down to hers so she could kiss him. 

"You're the one who is always running." he growled against her lips as his hands wrapped around her to pull her flush to his body. "You're the one who's not getting away. Never again." As he kissed her, he walked her back until her back hit the stone wall. He started to slide his hands down around to her ass, and then lower so he could pick her up, but she put a hand on his chest to stop him.

"You know, I think we should go have a word with Dino."

"Can't it wait?" he nipped at her neck and pressed her into the wall with his body. "I'd rather be doing something else right now."

She swatted at him with a laugh and he did take a step back. "Oh I'm all on board for that, but people are probably waiting for us to hear the news. And I'm pretty sure some of them are watching us from their windows right now. I'd rather not give them a show."

Gladio's cheeks actually turned a bit pink as he looked behind them towards the buildings. He couldn't see anyone from this distance but that didn't mean they were not being watched. "Er right, let's go talk to Dino then."

They only made it as far as the common before they were met with excited cheers. Everyone was there and clapping and hollering congratulations at them even before the couple had announced the news. Apparently everyone knew what was going on and what the outcome would be. Even Cor was standing out front of the hotel with a grin on his face. Gladio and Ruby made their way through the crowds until they reached Cor, Dino and Talbot also standing with him now.

"You have no idea how hard it was not to say anything about the rings!" Dino said with a wide grin.

"Out of curiosity, who asked you first?" Gladio asked.

"She did. By about...hm, almost a month I think?"

Gladio turned to look down at Ruby with widened eyes. "A month earlier?" thinking back on when he asked Dino to make the ring, and the hunting of ingredients he did the math. She'd asked Dino to make the ring around their six month anniversary. He couldn't stop himself from pulling her into a deep kiss.

Cor chuckled. "She'd been talking about it with Monica for awhile now. I of course ended up getting dragged into their conversations. When you then came to ask me for advice, I thought Monica would not be able to contain herself."

The woman herself was nearby and heard what was said. "I never would have said anything! I was worried about Dino!"

"Hey!"

"Yes, he almost spilled the beans the last time Ruby was here." Coctura said. "I had to make certain threats to keep him quiet." her husband rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.

"So earlier when you said you had enough material left that you could make a matching one..."

"Yeah, I'd already made it." Dino said then winced as his wife thwacked him in the back of the head gently. "I'm glad you didn't ask about that or I wouldn't have known what to say!"

They laughed for a moment. After that they said their goodbyes to the others who had come to congratulate them on their engagement. Ruby's eyes were teary with happiness at having so many friends around and people who supported them. Gladio felt a sting in his own eyes as well, something Ruby made sure to call him out on when he pretended they weren't there.

"I guess we should get back to base and let the others know. Monica, are you heading back to base with us?"

She shook her head. "I will probably be back tomorrow."

"Alright, take care heading back." Ruby gave the woman a hug, then gave Dino, Coco and finally Cor a hug in turn. "Thank you all. We'll see you again soon."

When they reached the base camp a couple hours later, the people there had the same reactions. Prompto ran over and picked Ruby up off her feet to spin her around in his excitement. Ignis offered a smile and a hug. Both men nagged Gladio about not asking her sooner. When he pointed out that Ruby was planning to ask him to marry her first, they all looked surprised. Then the teased Gladio about that too.

They wouldn't be family if they didn't.


	7. Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> First comes love  
> Second comes marriage

Due to the rate at which the night was increasing along with the danger, Gladio and Ruby did not wait long before they married. Two months after their engagement and they were in Lestallum for the wedding. The city had been decorated to suit the occasion and everyone they knew that could be there was there. Iris was up from Cape Caem while Cindy and Cid had come from Hammerhead. Their friends from all over were gathered in one place and the couple of the day were beyond thrilled.

Dave walked Ruby down the isle and he gave her to Gladio tearfully. Ignis and Prompto stood beside Gladio while Monica and Iris stood up for Ruby. Dino and Coco's daughter Abby was the flower girl for them and though he was older, Talcott carried the rings. They used the same rings that they had proposed with, neither seeing a reason not to. Their vows to each other were short and sweet. Each had written a second set that they would read to each other later that night away from the ears of others.

"You may now kiss the bride!" 

Gladio grinned and pulled Ruby into his arms for the kiss. He knew something was up when she chuckled into his mouth and then he found himself being dipped instead of her. He had a feeling that she was going to try it and so he had let her do so freely and even made a show of kicking one leg up. This got everyone cheering and whooping loudly. The kiss didn't last too long as Gladio was too heavy to hold up at this angle for too long. When she stood him up he immediately put her into a dip himself for another kiss. She nipped his lip as he moved to pull away and received a growl in response.

"Ehem, if you two could save that for later tonight? There is food and cake to be eaten!" Prompto patted Gladio on the back with a grin. "Oh, and dancing!"

Food was eaten, stories exchanged, and surprisingly a clean cake sharing between the bride and groom. Prompto had been looking forward to them shoving it in each others faces so was disappointed but Ignis only chuckled. 

"If they made a mess of each other, what do you suppose would happen?" he asked, still a smile on his face.

Prompto frowned for a moment then his cheeks went pink. "Ooooh. They are the type aren't they?" The last thing he wanted to see was Gladio diving face first into Ruby's dress. 

Music started to be played by the small band that normally performed in the common. A few others had joined them and so they had a nice variety to dance to. 

"Shall we dance, Mrs. Amicitia?" Gladio held his arm out with a warm smile on his face.

Ruby returned the smile and took his arm. "It would be my pleasure, Mr. Amicitia."

As the slow music started to play, the pair moved close together, foreheads pressing together, as they started their first dance as husband and wife.

"You look so sexy in a suit, Gladio. I'll have to make you wear one more." Ruby wound her fingers into Gladio's hair and leaned up to give him a kiss.

He chuckled. "I'll wear one whenever you want." his hand found the bare skin of her back and caressed while they moved to the music.

"May I cut in?" 

Gladio turned his head to see Cor standing there with a smile. Had had been waiting for the first song to end to come over. "Sure thing." He moved away to let the Marshal take his place.

"You look really beautiful today, and happy." Cor gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I am glad that the two of you found each other."

"With not so subtle pushing from you, you mean?" Ruby said with a smile. He nodded in response. "I'm glad you did, Cor. The way I love you may have changed, but I still love you nonetheless. I hope that you will continue to be there for us."

"Without question."

Before that song ended, the dance was interrupted again, but this time by Prompto as he took Cor's place. "Yeah, my turn!" 

Ruby couldn't help but laugh at his enthusiasm. "Hey, you're not bad Prompto. Have you been practicing?"

"Maybe!" his cheeks turned pink as he looked over to where Cindy was standing and talking with Monica and Iris. "I'm going to ask Cindy to dance and I didn't want to embarrass myself."

"Oh, so am I your test subject then?"

"Yup!" The pair of them laughed and joked just as much as they danced.

At the song change Ignis was there to replace Prompto. "I hope you don't mind the intrusion."

"Not at all, Ignis."

"You know, if I had been told that this is how things would work out when you first showed up, I never would have believed it. Gladio always insisted that he was never going to marry. He'd joke that he couldn't disappoint so many women by doing so."

"Yeah, sounds like something he'd say." she giggled.

"In truth, I knew it was because he has devoted himself so strongly to being Noctis' shield. I am happy that he finally allowed himself something outside of his duties. You have also tamed him rather well. He's not so reckless as he used to be. Then again, you are still reckless yourself. I'm not quite sure who is influencing who at this point."

A couple minutes later there was another tap on the shoulder, but this time it was for Ignis and not Ruby. Ruby giggled at the flustered look that came over her friends face when Arenea confidently told Ignis that they were dancing and promptly dragged him off to do so. Looking around Ruby saw that Prompto had managed to ask Cindy to dance and she grinned. They really were adorable together. Gladio was currently spinning Iris around with a wide smile on his face. When their eyes met, a warm and loving look passed between them. Ruby's next dance was with her uncle, Dave. After that she made her way back to her table to sit down. It wasn't long before Gladio joined her.

"Everyone is so eager to get their hands on my wife." Gladio said with a chuckle as he leaned over to place a kiss on her cheek. "I wanted to be the only one to sweep you off your feet."

"You'll be doing plenty of that later in ways no one else can." she picked up her glass and took a sip of the wine letting out a content sigh. "I am so happy right now."

Gladio reached over to take one of her hands in his and gave it a squeeze. "Yeah, me too. I just wish Noctis was here for it."

"Do you think that he'll like me? I hear you and the others talk so fondly about him that I'm afraid of disappointing him."

"He'll love you. If for some reason he doesn't I'll just have to work hard at changing his mind until he does." he captured her lips in his for a lingering kiss. When she tugged on his bottom lip with her teeth, he groaned into her mouth. "Hm, maybe we should go get changed now? I'm sure you'd like to get out of that dress."

"Definitely."

The pair of them let Cor know where they were going since he was also at the table, then took off laughing inside the hotel. They made their way to a room in the back that they were using and quickly started stripping each other down. Lots of kissing and touching happened but they both refrained from taking things farther than that. If they got started now, they would be here for the next couple of days locked in the room making love. It was still early and they still had a lot of mingling to do with their friends that had come from farther away to see them.

Both Ruby and Gladio put on their normal clothes, though Gladio did put on a shirt under his vest. "My hair's getting kinda long." he said as he looked at himself in the mirror.

"Leave it, it suits you." Ruby came up behind him and slid her hands up into his air. "Gives me more to pull on."

"Of course that's why you want me to keep it." he turned to face her with a grin, arms sliding around her waist. "But fine, I'll grow it out a bit more just for you."

"You spoil me."

"Too much according to Iggy." he leaned down and they shared a sweet kiss. "Well, better not leave our fans waiting any longer. I'm sure they are already talking about us."

"Let them talk. What they're saying is probably right anyway."

"In that case, let's give them more to talk about." Gladio kissed down Ruby's jaw until he reached the juncture of neck and shoulder. His mouth latched onto her skin and he began sucking a mark into it. Her head fell to the side and she pressed into him to encourage him. When he was finally satisfied, he lifted his head to inspect the mark he'd left. It was a deep purple and good sized. There would be no missing it.

Once again they walked together hand in hand as they went back out to the common to join the others. 

A couple hours later when the sun was starting to lower, the party finally started to break up. Goodbyes were said with promises to meet up again soon. Jokes were made and hugs exchanged. Endless teasing had the couple both blushing by the time most everyone had gone. All that was left to do was to finish cleaning up.

"You two go on ahead. You can leave the rest of this to myself and Prompto." Ignis said as he looked over to where Prompto was currently saying goodbye to Cindy in the form of a shy kiss. "Though I'm not sure how useful he will be now."

Ruby couldn't help but laugh. "True enough. I'm sure we'll be hearing about this for days. Though I am also curious about you. I expect you to spill the beans about Arenea eventually."

A slight pink graced Ignis cheeks. "I guess you won't leave me with a choice. In that case, Gladio, please don't feel the need to rush to get back to base."

"Oh, I don't plan on it. Thanks Iggy." With a grin, Gladio swept Ruby up off her feet to carry her to the hotel. "Now I finally get you all to myself."

"Yes, that was a bit tiring, but it was nice seeing everyone." Ruby locked her mouth onto Gladio's throat as they made their way inside the hotel and up the stairs to their room. "Shower first?"

As much as he wanted to go right to the bed, he nodded in agreement. "Yeah I smell like...everyone. One of the women I danced with had a strong perfume on and it's been burning my nose ever since."

"Is it the one who was grabbing your ass while you were dancing?"

"No, that was Martha." Gladio said with a chuckle. Martha was an older woman who worked in the flower shop and constantly teased him whenever she saw him.

"I can't blame her. I could squeeze this ass all day." Ruby reached around him and grabbed a handful, squeezing and pulling him to her as she did so.

"It's all yours, babe. Hell, all of me is."

Gladio managed to get the door open without having to put Ruby down, then kicked the door shut behind them. He turned and Ruby locked the door before he carried her into the bathroom. Only then did he put her down and it was with reluctance. He immediately began kissing her and pulling at her clothes and she did the same. The water was started and thankfully got hot fast so the pair quickly got in and started washing themselves and each other. Gladio sat on the little seat that was in there and Ruby stood behind him to wash his hair. He groaned as her fingers worked the soap in and then rinsed it out. 

Once out of the shower, the pair kissed their way into the bedroom and stopped when they reached the bed. Hands and mouths roamed shower warmed skin as they ground against each other.

"Mm, maybe we should have showered after. The bed is going to get all wet."

Ruby pulled away from him and crawled onto the bed. When she lay down comfortably with her legs open for him, she giggled. "Oh this bed was going to be getting wet either way. Now get over here and make love to me."

With a growl, Gladio crawled onto the bed and over her like a predator stalking his prey. He kissed his way slowly up her body until he reached her mouth. "Keep talking like that and I won't be able to hold myself back."

"You better not hold yourself back." her head fell to the side as his mouth assaulted her neck. Her hands came up to lightly drag her nails down his back making him shudder. "I want everything you have, Gladio." one of her hands reached down to grasp his cock, squeezing it firmly before beginning to stroke him. "Every. Last. Inch."

Their mouths crushed together and the fight for dominance started. While she fought him for control of the kiss her hand continued to work him into a frenzy. His breathing was fast as he panted into her mouth and a deep groan left his throat as she ran her thumb over the head of his now leaking cock. 

"Ungh, fuck." his voice was more air than words as his head dropped to press his forehead against hers, his hips rocking as he thrust into her hand.

"Gladio, I want you in me right now." she tugged on his ear with her teeth.

"I was kinda h-hoping to devour you first." his voice caught on another groan. "But with you working me up like this, yeah need you now." he lifted himself up a bit more and positioned himself at her entrance with her help. With one long, smooth push, he was fully sheathed inside. They both groaned at the feeling. "Fuck you feel so good." she was so tight, hot, and wet around him that he had to pause a moment so he wouldn't lose it already.

Ruby was impatient, however, and started rocking her hips almost immediately. "I've been wanting you since I first saw you in your suit. I can't wait any longer." her hands slid down his back to grasp his ass, pulling him harder against herself as she rocked up into him. "I'm surprised I was able to keep my hands off of you for as long as I did."

"I wanted to pull up your dress and fuck you right on the table, to hell with everyone else there." Gladio finally started meeting her thrusts with his own, quickly picking up speed and going deep. He leaned his weight on one of his elbows so that he could have a free hand to touch her with. He caressed her cheek as he gave her another kiss before that hand slid slowly down to cup a breast. When he ran a thumb across a hard nipple, she gasped and arched up into him. "It would have been one hell of a show."

"I'm not sure everyone would have enjoyed it. Hm, maybe Cor."

Gladio snorted. "He would probably try and give us pointers."

"We should ask him sometime."

"What, for pointers?"

"To watch us." Ruby tightened up around him at the thought of Cor watching them have sex. His gaze always went right to her core, which made her giggle.

Gladio growled and tightened an arm around her. "I don't want to share you with anyone." his thrusting became faster and harder and his mouth began attacking her again, leaving new marks on her skin. "I don't want anyone to see the faces you make. Mine only."

Ruby moaned at the deeper thrusts and dug her nails into his back, then cried out as his angle shifted to brush against her g-spot. "Fuck!" her legs came up and wrapped around his waist using them to help pull him down into her on his thrusts. "More, Gladio. Don't stop!"

While leaning back a bit more and adjusting himself, he slid his arms under her legs and pressed them up, opening her up to him even more. With the new angle he was able to get even deeper and he smirked as her eyes rolled back in her head. His paced had slowed down but he was still going hard and deep inside her, wanting to be completely buried inside of her as much as possible. Moving a hand down, he started rub and tease at her clit fast and with no mercy.

"G-Gladio, fuck, I'm going to-!" Ruby let out a shout and arched up off the bed as her orgasm came crashing down. her nails dug into his skin leaving welts behind and she continued to wail as he continued to pound into her.

"That's it babe, let go. I got ya." he grunted as she tightened and spasmed around his cock. 

He didn't slow down or ease up on his thrusting knowing that she could take it. Her body was shaking with over stimulation but never once did she ask him to stop or try to push him away. Instead she pulled him to her even tighter with her legs while her hands caressed over his hot skin. This time when she started tightening and clenching around him, Gladio's hips stuttered and he came with a long groan. Once his orgasm came to a stop, he fell down on top of her, putting his weight on his elbows so he wouldn't crush her.

Ruby's mouth covered every inch of him that she could reach with kisses while her hands came up to brush through his damp hair. When their eyes met, they both grinned before meeting in a slow and loving kiss. Their foreheads touched as they remained locked in the embrace.

"I love you."

"I love you too."


	8. Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A little fighter arrives

The first year of the marriage flew by for the couple. Even though things around them were getting worse, the day now only lasting about five hours before darkness engulfed everything, they were still happy. They went out on hunts together and enjoyed the thrill of the chase. They were always the ones to volunteer when anything dangerous came up and people started referring to them as the Guardians. Everyone looked up to them and helped them whenever they needed it.

Night had just fallen an hour ago and the couple was standing around trying to catch their breaths after battling some daemons. This particular group had been small fry, but there had been a dozen of them and so it was a long and drawn out battle. Sweat soaked their clothes, made worse by the heat and humidity that still clung to the air.

"I think it's time to head back to base." Gladio said as he wiped the sweat off his brow with his arm. He frowned as he saw Ruby sway on her feet. "Hey, you okay?"

Her head was lowered and she was still panting pretty hard. "Yeah, it's just so hot that it's hard to catch my breath." She took two steps towards him before she swayed again, then went down. Gladio was fast and managed to catch her before she hit the ground.

"Ruby?!"

Thankfully they had not been too far from the base when this happened and so he was able to get her back within fifteen minutes or so. When he reached the base, Ignis was the first to notice their arrival and rushed over to them. He took Ruby from Gladio and helped lay her down on a cot in the medical tent.

"What happened? I don't see any injuries other than some minor scratches." Ignis began to examine her more closely, a frown on his face. He checked her pulse and found that it was a bit weak but nothing alarming.

"I don't know. We just finished fighting a bunch of goblins and were trying to catch our breaths and she just collapsed." he paced at the foot of the bed, running his hands through his hair in frustration. "She just said that she was having trouble catching her breath because it's so damn hot out."

At this point the doctor had been found and she came over to do her own evaluation. "It looks like it's heat stroke." she turned and pulled something from a box and smashed it, then wrapped it in a cloth. "We need to cool her down. Try to also get some water into her." She then cleaned the minor wounds from the fighting. "It's the middle of summer right now. I know that it gets dark very quickly now, but you two still need to make sure you are drinking enough fluids, especially when you are out fighting. I'm honestly surprised that this has not happened before."

Gladio sat on the edge of the bed and put the cold pack on her forehead to cool her down while Ignis went off to get some cold water. "Sorry. I'll make sure to bring plenty of water with us from now on." 

The following morning Ruby had woken up in a sweat and shaking. Gladio was already out training and so she was alone in their room. She got to her feet before stumbling to the bathroom where she promptly threw up. It was mostly water from the amount she had been drinking since last night after she'd woken up from passing out. With a scowl she moved to the sink to wash out her mouth and brush her teeth.

"Guess I need to drink more water." she filled the glass that sat on the sink and drank all of it in one go. After cleaning up the rest of the way and dressing for the day, she left to go get food. Even after eating and drinking more, she still felt dizzy and weak. She headed over to go talk to the doctor only to have to detour to the bushes to throw up everything she'd just had to eat and drink.

"I'm worried that you may have caught something." The doctor said a couple minutes later once she had Ruby sitting on a cot. "You're not dehydrated anymore so I do not know what is causing the illness. I know a couple people in camp have been complaining about their stomachs. I think you should go to Lestallum and go to the hospital. They will be able to run tests on you there. I just don't have the equipment to do anything more here."

"Did you say Lestallum?" Monica had been nearby when she heard the two women talking. "I am getting ready to head out to go see Cor. I can go with you if you want."

"Thank you Monica that would be nice."

When Gladio returned from his morning run, he found that Ruby had gone. Monica sent him a message shortly after letting him know what was going on and he relaxed a bit. He was still worried that his wife was sick, but there wasn't much he could do on his end. He set about training some new recruits that they picked up two weeks ago to keep his mind off worrying.

It wasn't until later in the day, what would be late afternoon but with it being so dark now they just called it early evening, until Ruby returned. Monica gave him a reassuring smile but did not say anything. Ruby was silent and heading off into the building that their room was in. With a frown, Gladio went after her.

"Ruby, is everything okay? Did you catch something?" Gladio went over to her and watched as she paced around muttering to herself.

She snorted at his words. "I guess you could say I caught something. I caught a baby." she looked up at him with uncertain eyes. "You're going to be a father."

Gladio's eyes went wide as he processed her words. At seeing her looking unsure and even a bit scared, he grinned and pulled her into his arms. "I love you. I love you so damn much." he then gave her a long kiss.

Slowly she started to relax in his arms but she was still worried. "With everything that's going on...you don't think this is a bad idea? The daemons are coming more frequently and getting stronger. Who knows how much longer we'll be able to keep them at bay. To bring a child into the world when it's like this..." she was chewing on her lip and refusing to meet his eyes.

"This is the best time. Fuck, it may be the only time for this." he tilted her chin up and placed another kiss on her lips. "We need more light in this world and it won't be dark forever. I'll do everything in my power to keep you both safe. To keep everyone safe." their foreheads touched and she let out a slow sigh. "It's okay, I got you."

"Okay, then let's do it. Let's be parents." Finally Ruby fully met his eyes and smiled. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Where the fuck is Gladio?!" Ruby yelled out a growl as she writhed on the bed in pain. Her sweat soaked clothes clung to her skin and her hair was a wild mess. She let out another groan of pain and clutched the blanket under her tightly. 

Ignis hurried over to her side and eased her back down against the bed. "He just sent me a message saying he'll be here shortly. He just got into the city." He picked up a cold cloth and placed it over her forehead. He winced in sympathy as she arched on the bed again as another contraction hit.

The midwife came back into the room to check her vitals and progress. "Ah, looks like it's going to be any time now."

"Just as a fair warning, Gladio will be here any minute. He is most liking going to come barreling through without much awareness to those around him. I apologize on his behalf for anyone who most likely will be knocked over by him"

Ignis had barely got the words out before shouting could be heard out in the hallway. A second later, something large and heavy crashed into the door. Then the door opened and Gladio stumbled in, falling to his knees, then quickly got up to only fall again at the side of the bed.

"I do hope you didn't trample anyone on your way in?" Ignis moved from where he was so Gladio could take his place beside his wife.

"Uh no, but I did take out a cart." he was breathing hard and was red faced as he looked to the midwife. "I'm sorry."

She only laughed. "It's not the first time that this has happened. I'm just happy no one got hurt."

They were interrupted by another cry of pain from Ruby. She grabbed one of Gladio's hands and squeezed it hard enough he actually yelped.

"Where have you been?" She whimpered through the pain and some tears escaped her eyes.

Gladio wiped the tears away and pressed his lips to her forehead. "I'm sorry it took me so long to get back. I ran into a Red on the way here."

Ruby's eyes were instantly moving over him, finally taking noticed of his disheveled state. Seeing that he was okay, she let out a relieved sigh. "Cutting it a bit close, don't you think?"

"The important thing is that I'm not late." 

Gladio only stepped away from her long enough to get cleaned up and into scrubs before he was back at her side and helping her through the contractions. Three hours later, a loud wail went through the room as the newest Amicitia entered the world. 

"Congratulations, you have a healthy boy." The baby was then cleaned up before being passed over to the new parents.

Gladio took the squirming bundle into his arms since Ruby was too exhausted to lift hers. He lay down next to her so they could both be as close to him as possible. He softly ran his finger over the baby's pink cheeks as some tears slipped down his own. When the baby managed to grab his finger and hold on tightly, he grinned.

"He's so strong already. He's going to be one hell of a fighter."

"Mm, but hopefully not so cocky as his father."

"Or stubborn like his mother."

"Ass."

"I love you."

Ruby huffed at him, hating whenever he did that when she was trying to tease him. It always made her cheeks turn red and now was no exception. "I love you too."

"Did the two of you have a name picked out for him yet?" The doctor asked.

"Yeah, it's Clarus." she said with a smile. "Named after his grandfather."


	9. Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The long awaited day arrives as Noctis finally shows up. Noctis gets the surprise of his life.

The day that Talcott called saying that he just picked up Noctis, everyone lost it. Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto all happened to be together, which hadn't happened in awhile due to various reasons. They did try to meet up once a month at least to check up on each other. They had met up this time at Hammerhead and that is where Talcott had called since it had become the main communication hub.

"You certainly took your sweet time getting back here, Noctis." Gladio said with a grin as he moved to embrace the other man in a tight hug. "Damn, you've really grown!"

"Nooooooct!" Prompto wailed and attached himself to the other like a monkey. "Why did you get bigger than me?!"

"Contain yourself, Prompto. He looks worn out as it is." Ignis said. As soon as the blond removed himself from Noctis, Ignis hugged him as well. "It's good to see you again, Noctis."

"Guys...it's good to be back." Noctis looked around Hammerhead sadly. Talcott had filled him in on things he's been missing and his heart ached. Seeing his friends again made him feel better.

"Oooh, you are not going to believe the things you've missed!" Prompto said with a wide grin.

"I am very curious. Talcott wouldn't tell me anything about you guys except that you're doing well."

"Good, you're going to be surprised." Gladio nodded at a truck off to the side. "Why don't we ride back to Lestallum together and catch up? We can stop at the campsite on the way before we get there."

Noctis gave a nod. "Yeah, there are some things we need to talk about."

The following morning when they reached Lestallum, it was with very heavy hearts. Noctis had filled them in on what was going to happen once he did what he had to do. The other three had only sat there in shock before the denial started. Then the anger and finally tears. Noctis had already come to peace with what was going to happen and so he talked them through it until they understood that it was not only necessary but unavoidable. Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto managed to all calm themselves and their hearts before reaching the city enough that they could smile again. They didn't want Noctis last days to be depressing, but as happy as possible.

"I guess it's good that we haven't told you all the news yet." Gladio spoke up as they got out of the truck once they'd parked inside the city's walls.

Gladio led the way through the large gate and down the path that led to the common. Shouting could be heard as they got closer to it until they emerged into the lit up area to find people gathered around in a circle. In the center was a boy of about eight years old swinging a large sword around while a girl of about the same age used a spear. They circled around each other slowly and then attacking in bursts of speed before jumping apart again. They seemed evenly matched.

"They're at it again, I see." Ignis said with a sigh. 

"His form his terrible." Gladio muttered before yelling "Watch the position of your back leg!"

The boy turned his head to look at the person who shouted only to find himself flat on his back mere seconds later. "H-hey, no fair. I got distracted!"

"That's why you lost. If I’d been a real enemy, you'd be dead now." the girl said with a smirk and removed the wooden blade of her spear from his throat. 

The boy rolled up to his feet and lunged at her but the girl easily danced out of his range.

"Alright, that's enough you two. Everyone get back to your sparring!" Cor emerged from the crowd and made his way over to Gladio and the others. When he saw Noctis, he immediately bowed his head. "King Noctis, we've been waiting." he then surprised everyone by pulling Noctis into a hug.

Noctis chuckled and patted the man’s back. "Good to see you, Cor. I see you're having fun training some newbies."

"This is a promising bunch, especially those two." He jerked a thumb over his shoulder at the pair that had just been fighting. "If only they would stop trying to one up each other all the time and work on improving their teamwork. They take after their parents too much. He's stubborn like an ox with more strength than he knows what to do with, and she spends so much time calculating all the possibilities that her reactions are slower than they could be."

The others laughed between themselves and Noctis was left feeling awkward.

"Uh, did I miss something?"

"Oh, you haven't told him yet." Cor said and smiled.

"That's what we came here to do." Gladio gave a whistle and then waved his hand. The boy with the sword jogged over to them.

"Sir?" he looked between Gladio and Cor.

Gladio slapped a hand on the boy's shoulder with a grin. "Noctis, I want you to meet my son Clarus. Clarus, this is Pri- I mean King Noctis."

Noctis's eyes went wide like saucers as he looked between father and son. Seeing the boy up close, he was very obviously related to Gladio. They had the same dark hair and amber colored eyes and dark skin. Even the way the boy stood was similar to Gladio. The large sword he held looked like the one Gladio had used back when he used to train Noctis when they still lived in Insomnia.

The boy was staring at him with wide eyes before he bowed his head. "The way my dad talks about you, I thought you'd be bigger." his face suddenly turned pink. "I mean he said you're really strong so I thought you'd be big like him."

"I understand what you mean." Noctis finally said with a warm smile after laughing a bit. He was worried that his friends would not move forward while he was away. He was happy to have been wrong. "You look like a skilled fighter, Clarus."

"I'm the best fighter!" he said with a grin.

"What did I tell you about being so cocky?" Cor scolded.

"Sorry." Both Gladio and Clarus answered in sync which made the others laugh.

They talked for a few more minutes about the current state of things and their battle strength. While that was going on, Noctis caught movement from the corner of his eye. When he turned to look, it was to see a little figure dart behind a table. He caught Gladio's eye and the other man just smirked before holding up a finger to his mouth. Noctis nodded and turned his attention back to the conversation. He saw the same amused look on Cor's face though the man was fighting back the smile.

The next moment happened quickly. Not one but two figures darted out of their hiding places and attacked Prompto in the legs, causing the man to yelp in surprise before being taken down to the ground. The pair who attacked him climbed on top to pin him down before shouting in victory.

"We have slain the daemon!" the first one, a little girl with a braid, shouted as she held a wooden sword to Promptos neck.

"He went down more easily than I thought." the little boy said and looked down at Prompto with disappointment.

"H-hey?!" Prompto squirmed under the girl with wide eyes. He tried to get up only to find a rope tangled around his feet. When did that get there?

"Yes, fight more! It's not fun if it's too easy!" The girl had a wide grin on her face.

"Alright you two, mission accomplished." A woman with short dark hair and visibly pregnant said with a laugh as she walked over to the group. "Now release your uncle."

Noctis looked between the woman and the twins as they untied Prompto's legs. She had stopped to stand beside Gladio who had slipped an arm around her waist. The way he was looking at her made him think of Luna.

"Good timing. I was going to stop by and introduce you but you saved me a trip." Gladio kissed her forehead then smiled at Noctis. "This is Ruby, my wife. The two monsters are Corrin and Azalea." 

Prompto had Azalea on the ground and was tickling her. She was screeching with laughter and fighting to get away but this time she was unable to do so. Corrin had moved over to his mother when she showed up and was hiding behind her now, peeking around her hip to look up at Noctis.

"I'm glad to finally meet you in person, Noctis. With the way the others go on about you, I feel like I know you well already." Ruby held out her hand and Noctis took it. Her brows went up in surprise when the king actually placed a kiss on the back of it.

"Thank you for taking care of Gladio while I've been away." Noctis had even lowered his head for a moment, unable to express fully how truly grateful he was to see everyone doing so well. Noctis suddenly felt an impact and looked down to see Azalea wrapped around one of his legs and looking up at him with a scowl.

"No one can kiss mommy but daddy! And me!" she added after a moment. 

Noctis looked up to Ruby and Gladio with wide eyes for help and the pair just laughed. "Uh, I'm sorry?"

"Azalea, you remember the stories I read to you where the prince kisses the princess on the hand?" Ruby said and smiled when the girl nodded. "Well, this is Noctis and he is the king. That means like the prince, he sometimes will give a kiss on the hand."

Her eyes went wide. "Mommy is a princess?" she unwound herself and looked up at Noctis with a pout. "I want to be a princess!"

"It doesn't exactly work like that..." Gladio had started but then stopped at a light swat from his wife.

Noctis hummed before dropping to one knee. He reached out a hand and took one of Azalea’s in his and then placed a kiss on the back of it. "It is a pleasure to meet you, Azalea. Would you do me the honor of becoming a princess?"

Her eyes went wide with surprise and delight but before she could respond, her brother had yanked her away from Noctis, then stood between them. 

Noctis chuckled at the behavior. "I see. Are you her shield, Corrin?" he reached over and placed a hand on the boys shoulder who held his gaze unflinching. "You must also be strong like your father then. It is a very tough job though, are you up to it?"

"I won't let anyone hurt Az!" 

Gladio moved and scooped both of his children up and spun them around once before holding them up on his shoulders. "You two monsters need to behave. This is King Noctis. You need to treat him better than your other two uncles."

Noctis shook his head as he rose to his feet. "No, I'd rather be treated the same."

Ignis spoke up then, "You may regret saying that later. They are a rough and rowdy bunch and take after their parents very much."

Prompto moved over to Noctis and tugged up one of his shirt sleeves. "I was sparring with Clarus and he got a really good hit on me. Left a good scar behind!"

The boy in question grinned and held up his sword. "You have a long way to go still." he spoke as if he were the older of the two and teacher, not the student.

As the kids began to banter with Prompto and their father, Ruby moved over to pull Noctis away from them a bit. "I'm sorry if they've overwhelmed you. They never hold back anything whether it be their words or their actions. They are fighters through and through." 

"No, I don't mind at all. I am not surprised either considering who their father is. I'm afraid that I don't know you well enough yet, but I am going to assume that you are very similar to Gladio and that is why you two found each other."

"You could say that." Ruby sat down in a nearby chair and put her hands on her belly. "You must be very anxious to see Luna after all this time."

Noctis felt pain clench in his chest at the mention of her name. "Yeah, it's been a long time." the last time he'd seen her was at the alter facing Leviathan. Now she was gone and the only way he'd see her was in the afterlife. He would be there soon enough and then they would be reunited.

"I can't believe they didn't bring you to her first."

"What do you mean?" Noctis said with a frown.

This time Ruby was frowning before she looked angry. "You idiot!" she snapped which got everyone's attention. "Gladio, you didn't tell him about Lunafreya yet?!"

Gladio, Ignis, and Prompto all froze before looking at each other. "We were saving that news for last. Thought it would be a nice surprise for him after everything."

Noctis swallowed thickly and turned to face his three best friends. "What about Luna? What is going on?"

"Noct, Lunafreya is alive."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A couple days passed and the group once again stood together, this time at the city gates in Lestallum. Gladio and Ruby were off to the side alone, holding each other tightly while the others checked their weapons and supplies.

"Ruby, I have to go." Gladio said softly as her arms tightened around his waist more. "We knew that this was going to happen."

"I know." she looked up at him with tear stained cheeks. "I'm just not ready to let you go."

Gladio leaned down and kissed her, the kiss quickly turning deeper and more desperate as the fated time drew near.

"I know that you have to go because you are his friend and his Shield. I don't expect you to run away from your sworn duty." Ruby tightened her fingers in Gladio's jacket. "You just better come back to us. If you don't, I swear I'll hunt you down and kill you, Gladiolus."

He chuckled. "I know you would." he was silent for a moment, just enjoying holding her in his arms. "You know I can't make any promises, but I will do my damnedest to get back to you and the kids." his hand moved to rest on her belly. "It wouldn't be right if this little one never knew their father."

"Gladio, it's time." Noctis called as he walked over. He did not want to interrupt them, but he had no choice. He felt horrible tearing them apart but he also knew Gladio would never stay behind. "Ruby, I'll make sure he comes home."

Ruby smiled sadly. "You can't make promises either, Noctis. I appreciate the sentiment though. I'd be pissed if he didn't do his job of protecting you properly. I just wish that I was able to go along and help out."

"Even if you weren't with child now, there's no way I'd let you." Gladio said firmly, eyes hard. "We're going to be walking into hell and I want you as far from that as possible." 

"Remember what happened the last time you tried to stop me from going somewhere?"

He huffed. "That was different. Besides, it's not happening anyway so there's no point in talking about it." Gladio stepped away from his wife and moved over to Clarus who had snuck out to follow them. "Clarus, I'm counting on you to keep your mom, brother, and sister safe while I'm away. Can you do that?"

"Y-yes Sir." Clarus was doing his best to be strong but he was trembling and had tear filled eyes. "I'm strong like you so I won't let anyone hurt them!"

Gladio patted him on the shoulder before leaning down to kiss his forehead. He then moved over to Cor who was talking with Ignis and Prompto.

"Don't worry, I'll keep an eye on them for you." Cor said softly. "You don't even have to ask."

"Thanks." Gladio said with a grin. "Well, time to go get this show on the road and go kick that bastards ass."


	10. Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let there be light

The next morning, it was truly that. The dim light slowly filled the sky as the sun began to rise for the first time in years. People flooded the streets to look up at the light and cried tears of joy. Inside the hotel, Ruby was sobbing while the twins ran around with excitement. They had never seen the sky light before. Clarus had no memory of it and so he looked on in fascination as well. Once she pulled herself together, Ruby took the kids outside so they could see the sky better. Cor went outside with her to help keep an eye on the kids and to enjoy it himself.

"Noctis did it. It's over." 

Celebrations started almost immediately and went on throughout the day and well into the night. The following day they continued as the sun once again rose and this time was as bright as it should be. There was no more Starscourge or darkness. With this new day a new excitement was brought as the news that Lady Lunafreya had awoken from her long sleep. Cor had gone to her side to help her with things as she worked on getting her strength back. The next day she was able to move about unassisted and joined everyone else in the celebrations. She and Ruby became quick friends as they talked about the things they had in common and the ones that they loved.

On the fourth day, Ruby was too depressed to put on the fake smile for her children. While the world had been saved, there had been no word from Gladio or the others. Monica had arrived and was helping take care of her children while she had locked herself in her bedroom, refusing to talk to anyone else. Her heart was broken. She was trying to be strong for her children but was failing. Her arms wrapped around her belly, feeling her unborn child inside kick, but even that did not make her happy like it usually did. Sobs wracked her body as she let go of the tears she'd been fighting since Gladio had left.

Day five and there was a knock at the bedroom door.

"Go away." Ruby said weakly.

"Ruby, please let me in?" The soft voice belonging to Luna spoke from the other side of the door. When there was no response, the door slowly creaked open not having been locked. The former oracle approached the woman laying on the ground curled into a ball and knelt beside her. "It will be okay." she placed a hand on her shoulder and waited until the other woman looked up at her. "They are alive, I can feel it. Can't you feel Gladiolus?"

"I only feel empty."

Luna just continued to smile softly at her. "Close your eyes and focus on him. Push aside everything else and reach for him."

Ruby let out a long sigh as she let her eyes fall closed and did as she was told. There was nothing at first, but soon she felt a familiar presence. It was far away but it was there. There was a sudden bust of light inside her mind and then she could feel Gladio's presence very strongly. Her eyes flew open and her head snapped to doorway expecting to see her husband there but there was no one.

"They will be here soon. Shall I help you get cleaned up before then?"

Ruby wanted to turn down the help but realized that she did need it. "Thank you, Luna."

After getting a shower and changing into fresh clothes, Luna took her down to get something to eat. Cor was there and cooking something on the stove that smelled delicious. He had been cooking more since he'd started working there in Lestallum and knew his way around the kitchen quite well. He wasn't on Ignis' level but the food tasted good. He set down a plate of eggs and sausage and a steaming mug of hot chocolate. There was already a platter of fruit on the table as well.

"I'm glad to see you up and about, Ruby. I hope that you are feeling better." Cor sat down at the table across from where the women had sat. "The kids have been asking for you."

"I am so sorry. I have not been responsible at all." she poked at her food with a frown. "I'm not fit to be a mother."

"Nonsense, you are human just like everyone else, Ruby. You are allowed to grieve and be sad. You don't have to be strong all the time. Besides, you have plenty of friends around who are more than willing to help." Luna said with a smile.

Cor nodded, "Clarus has really stepped up in his training too. It seems he finally found a goal to work towards. As for the twins, Monica has been giving them little missions to keep them busy and they are having fun with it. I also don't think that she's going to want to give them back to you." he added with a chuckle.

They had just finished breakfast when a loud commotion outside could be heard. The three of them immediately headed outside to see what everyone was yelling about.

Walking through the gate all holding each other up, were Gladio, Ignis, Prompto, and Noctis. They were worse for wear but alive.

"I'm home." Gladio said with a smile when he saw Ruby. He had to quickly let go of Ignis as she ran over to him and threw herself in his arms. "Shh, it's okay, we're okay." he soothed and rubbed her back as she sobbed in his arms. "Sorry it took so long, we had to walk most of the way." No more words were said as they kissed passionately.

The cheering at their arrival lasted for a couple minutes before the crowd went mostly silence. Noctis and Luna stood in the center of the crowd staring at each other before they both smiled and wrapped their arms around each other. The crowd started cheering again.

The Starscourge had been destroyed, taking out all the daemons with it, and King Noctis and Lady Lunafreya had finally been reunited at last. A short month later and their wedding would be the start of light and happiness for many years to come.


End file.
